


Blue, Rojo, Verde!

by HermesSerpent



Series: The Continuous Exploits of the Three Caballeros [1]
Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017), The Three Caballeros (1944)
Genre: AU, Basically, College, Donald Duck Needs a Hug, I'm Bad At Tagging, José uses magic, Magic, Maybe - Freeform, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pre-Canon, a little inspired by the legend of three caballeros but is not related explicitly, friends being brothers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:01:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 26
Words: 30,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23955028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HermesSerpent/pseuds/HermesSerpent
Summary: College. A place to learn new skills, get new friends and discover new adventures. Panchito, Donald, and José are all freshmen students ready to get their degrees and take on the world. As they become friends the trio discovery a hidden mystery beneath their fair campus. Can they survive the hidden dangers that await them?This was written because I feel like there should be more three Callaberos content and I also wanted to read more preshow with the three friends together. Donald deserves to have happiness! In this house we stan happy Donald Duck.
Relationships: José Carioca & Donald Duck & Panchito Pistoles
Series: The Continuous Exploits of the Three Caballeros [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1757206
Comments: 92
Kudos: 116





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here are the translations for the chapter. I'm using google translate, so I'm sorry. I really wanted my boys to still have their own languages. Let me know if I left one out!  
> Um dia de azar-A day of bad luck.  
> Nada de ruim é para sempre-Nothing bad is forever  
> Tenho saudade-I miss it

Donald rolls out of his hammock at the sound of his alarm, groaning as he lands on the floor. He shuts it off, rubbing his face and starting to get ready for the day. Being in the navy had gotten him somewhat used to dressing early when half awake. Donald splashes cold water in his face in the sink in the bathroom then walks back the hall to his dorm. Grabbing his bag and keys, the duck locks the door behind himself. He then starts quickly down the hallway, eager to get a head start in heading to his first college class in case his rotten luck got in the way. 

He arrives just in time, sidetracked a few times by minor bouts of bad luck, like entering multiple other building and getting knocked down to the sidewalk. But, he decides to look on the good side of the situation. He now knows three names and locations of other buildings on campus that he had not known before. Donald sits down, determined to have a good first day in college. 

This attitude lasts until his second class starts. Due to its small size the professor had everyone stand and introduce themselves. Donald had felt frustration, knowing that no one is likely to understand him. Rarely anyone could. He powers through it, fists clenching at the sight of everyone wincing at his grating voice. The professor says he can introduce himself when his voice was less affected by cold. To which he sarcastically replies that his voice would always sound this way, given that it was his natural voice. 

After that class he is determined to just push through the last class. But, right before that class, a freak rainstorm occurs. Soaking him through to the bone. A passing car splashes mud all over him, forcing him to go to class dirty and wet. He could have retreated back to his dorm but, ducks don’t back down. He arrives late due to going to the bathroom and wiping his face. Donald sighs as he sits in a seat burying his face in his hands. His feathers begin to uncomfortably dry in clumps, dirt marring his normally white plumage. He can feel eyes on him and it frustrates him. He feels too drained to turn and start yelling at them for staring. In the middle of the lecture, he begins to daydream of returning to his dorm for a hot shower and then playing his guitar a little to let off some steam. Maybe he could call Della to have a friendly voice to help with the nightmare of a day.

The shower is cold and a sign informs him that the warm water is broken for the next week. Great. Donald cleans himself off best he can in the icy water, shivering. The duck dresses and grabs his guitar and keys, not wanting to bother his dormmate or hallmates with the screaming music he wants to play to vent. He stops at the hall phone to attempt to call his sister. She does not pick up. Must be on an adventure. Donald tries to not let it get to him. He heads to the park located nearby, feeling a little optimistic despite still shivering. While trying to find a secluded place he trips over a tree root, tumbling down. He yells, trying to protect his guitar as he fell through the air. But it is all for not. The neck snaps and Donald can feel his heart snap too. He shouts and punches the tree several times, his knuckles becoming bloody. He sobs, curling up beneath the tree, clutching at his broken instrument. Donald weeps into his hands, whimpering between hiccuped sobs. Nothing is going right today. His eyes burn, his hand’s ache, and he can barely think straight.

\----------------------------------

José Carioca is having a pretty good first day of class. He had successfully navigated around campus, had gotten ahead on some reading, and had discovered a delightful little café beside his last class of the day. He happily walks to a nearby park, humming as he swings his umbrella around. Carefully he navigates around the roots, occasionally singing a lyric or two, missing the music from home. But the opportunity to do better had appealed to him and José could think of no better place to spend his time than college. 

He pauses at the sounds of distress. The green parrot starts looking around and finds a white duck sobbing beneath a large tree. José frowns and feels his heart go out for the poor guy. It seems like not everyone’s first day of classes was a success. He decides to help. His mãe had always wanted him to kind and put more good into the world to help counteract the bad. Mãe had also always warned him about using too much magic in public and to be careful who he shared the family’s secret with. José steps forward with a shifted song, stepping and moving in a half dance to bring his magic into his hand. He carefully places it on the stranger’s shoulder. It is not much, a simple mood-lifting piece of magic, that inspired positive emotions. The duck looks up with teary red eyes and José sits down beside him, ignoring the dirt. 

“What happened my amigo? Surely nothing that can not be undone?”

The duck sniffles and kicks at the dirt. He squeaks out an answer in a voice that manages to be high pitched and gravely. José blinks taping the side of his head with his umbrella with a soft hum in the middle of the duck’s ramble. It becomes a little easier to understand his voice through the distress and tears that are coloring it.

“And I broke my guitar, I can’t afford to fix it! My sister didn’t pick up and no one at this university can understand a word I say.”

“That sounds like a terrible day. Um dia de azar.” 

He pats the duck sympathetically, looking over the damaged instrument. The duck sighs sadly. 

“I just wanna go home…”

The duck murmurs sadly rubbing his fingers across the snaped strings. José can sympathize with having an awful day. 

“Hey. It is as my mãe always says. Nada de ruim é para sempre. Nothing bad is forever. Come, my amigo. Let’s go get you some food. A full belly and good company can help solve even the darkest of moods.”

The duck absently nods and José gathers up the pieces of the instrument. They begin walking to the student center, which has restaurants in a part of the first floor. José lets the duck order and then insists on paying. The other bird thanks him and the parrot can see a hint of a smile on his bill. They sit at a nearby table, with José carefully placing the instrument down in a third chair.

“I am José Carioca.”

The duck gives him a half-smile when he holds out a hand to shake.

“Donald Duck.”

“Pleasure to meet you senhor Donal’.”

José then begins asking the usual questions associated with college, wanting Donald to shift his mind from the bad day at hand. 

“So what is your major amigo?”

“Er, it’s mechanical engineering. And you?”

“Theatre.”

“Really? Cool!”

José smiles at this and leans back casually. 

“So what type of music do you play?”

The duck looks at his damaged guitar wistfully and leans against the table.

“All sorts. I’ll try just about anything. And any instrument. But my guitar is the only one I own. And now I cant.”

José sees a weariness falling over the duck, undoing his work. He taps the table with his umbrella.

“I can get your guitar fixed.”

The duck looks up with suddenly narrowed eyes. 

“What’s the catch?”

“Play music with me some time Donal’. I miss it from home. Everyone in my family sings. Tenho saudade. And perhaps be my friend.”

The parrot winks jovially and Donald gives a laugh. The duck agrees and they trade dorm names, room numbers, and hall telephone numbers before separating for the night. José happily watches Donald leave in a lighter mood. He hopes the next day will treat his new friend better.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:   
> Gracias mi amigo-thank you my friend  
> Olá-hello  
> Hola-Hello

Panchito easily admits that he might not be the smartest bird when it comes to directions. He had gone into at least five different buildings on the way to his class and is now hopelessly lost. One would think that it being the second day of classes would make it easier. The rooster glances around, hoping to spot someone that looked approachable to see if he good get some help. He spots a white duck walking nearby and he bolts over to them. 

“Hello! I am Panchito Romero Miguel Junipero Francisco Quintero González Pistoles the third. Friends call me Panchito. Can you tell me where the building called Kumartice is?”

The duck blinks after he delivers his entire thought in one breath. Panchito smiles hopefully at the stranger.

“I can take you there.”

“Oh! Gracias mi amigo!”

He shakes the duck’s hands, leaving the other shaking. He gives a large grin and loops his arm in the duck’s. He gets an embarrassed huff from the stranger, but the duck quickly begins to tug the rooster.

“So! What is your name amigo?”

“Donald Duck.”

“Ah! Very nice to meet you, señor Donal’.” 

The duck gives him an odd glance but shifts into a slight smile. They approach a brick building that has tall letters over an arch spelling Kumartice.

“Here we are. Panchito, right?”

“Si! Gracias mi amigo! Ill see you around señor Donal’!!” 

Panchito hurries into the building, making it just in time for the lesson to begin. He happily begins to take notes about the future of the course. He fiddles with his pen, mind already wandering away. The rooster jots down a few song lyrics he thinks of, pairing them with a few doodles. He thinks over a tune he wants to strum on his guitar. Maybe he could play something soon. 

\-------------------------------------

Donald steps into his once a week Wednesday class with a cursory glance around. He sits in the middle row watching as other students begin to file in. He swings his webbed feet and rubs his face. Yesterday and today had been a little better than the first Monday. Donald’s eyes widen as José swaggers into the room, twirling his umbrella. The parrot spots him and saunters over and plops down into the chair on his left.

“Olá Senhor Donald!”

“Hey, José.”

“It is good to see you, amigo. Have you free time Friday?”

“Sure? Why?”

“I got your guitar fixed and I was thinking… How do you say? Nós poderíamos tocar música juntos. Play music?”

“Jam?”

“Sim! Jam!”

José smiles widely while casually leaning back in his chair. 

“Sure pal.”

“Fantástico! We can meet at the park around 4ish, sim?”

Before Donald can respond a red rooster taps his shoulder. He turns, recognizing Panchito.

“Hola señor Donald!” 

The rooster offers up a large smile, which Donald shakily returns. The duck leans back and gestures to the parrot.

“This is José.”

The parrot waves a hand nonchalantly through the air.

“Olá. I am José Carioca. You know Donald?”

“Hola señor José! Donald helped me find a class yesterday. I am Panchito Romero Miguel Junipero Francisco Quintero González Pistoles the third! My friends call me Panchito!”

José nods and the rooster plops down into the chair. The three of them begin discussing their majors, with Panchito revealing that he is there for agricultural engineering. They settle into a natural rhythm chatting until the professor starts the class. The trio ends up hanging after class, eating lunch together. They find that they all share an interest in music.

“Panchito, you should join us in the park Friday!” 

Donald nods along with José’s suggestion. Panchito looks very excited, his eyes shining.

“What time?”

“Around three?”

The excitement fades a little. 

“Ah. I have a class that is at that time. Could I come around an hour later?”

Donald looks to José who smiles with a nod. The duck smiles as the rooster leaps up with an excited yell. 

“Ah mis amigos! The fun we will have!”

Panchito drags the two into a hug and Donald lets out a squeaky quack while José laughs jovially. Donald smiles and shakes his head.

\------------------------

José wipes his flute with a cloth, making it shine as he waits for Donald to arrive in the park. When at home, he usually used his umbrella for all his music, but that was a fairly obvious piece of magic. He figures its best to be careful with his powers while in a foreign land. He twirls the instrument and blows experimentally. It sounds perfect. For a normal flute. His umbrella always held a little extra oomph to the notes. He here an excited shout and spots Donald, who’s white feathers have a splatter of bruises around his face. His feathers on his left cheek are bent and in a disarray with blood dripping slowly. José feels worry slip into his veins. This is the second time he had seen the duck injured and it is only their third meeting. 

“What happened?”

The parrot drops his usually calm attitude, voice full of concern. The duck waves a hand through the air.

“I have really bad luck. This is not that big of an injury. I tripped over a skateboard.”

José frowns and opens his bag, looking through it. He pulls out a cloth, antiseptic and a bandage. Donald looks at him questioningly.

“I always carry around this stuff. Just in case.”

The parrot wipes away the blood and applies the antiseptic and bandage. Donald huffs and squirms.

“This isn’t really necessary José! I get hurt all time. My family never makes this big a deal over this small of a scratch.”

José shushes him and finishes up.

“Maybe they should. When you stop watching the small things the big picture catches you by surprise. Here. I got your guitar fixed.”

The parrot passes it over, wondering what kind of home life the duck is coming from. Donald grabs the guitar he had repaired with magic and strums it experimentally. He begins to play a popular tune and José follows his lead, bringing the flute into the mix. They play a mixture of different songs, with José pulling out his accordion, and he exchanges instruments so often. Donald had seemed reserved at first, clearly worried about his voice, but he grows steadily bolder. They started on a particularly rambunctious song, José playing the accordion and Donald playing his guitar. They dance around and their voices pierce the air. 

A third voice joins them and the two see Panchito dancing towards them with his own guitar. They add a few exciting yells into the song and continue to dance around. The entire event is high energy and José feels relief after a long week of classes. They finish the number and Panchito crows. José laughs and leans casually against a tree. Donald sucks in a few deep breaths, seeming to regain his energy in a very short period of time. Panchito bounces with a broad grin. But he freezes as he catches sight of Donald’s face and seems to focus on it for the first time. 

“What happened Donald?”

The duck looks startled and confused. José assumes this is because Donald himself had forgotten the injury.

“Oh, this? Its nothing. I tripped on a skateboard.”

This earns the duck a frown from the rooster.

“Don’t worry Panchito. I took care of it.”

José replies to the worried face, earning an eye roll from the duck. Panchito nods and begins strumming the chords of another popular song. They soon are playing and shouting happily once more. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Feel free to come interact with me on my Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/hermesserpent-stuff  
> Stay safe out there!!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:  
> Estoy muriendo- I’m dying.  
> Surpreendente- Amazing

Panchito is not entirely sure how it had happened but the three had started hanging out most days when they finished classes, not just Fridays. It is the third week of classes when Panchito starts suggesting that they form a band and name themselves. On that Thursday of the third week, they were planning to meet in the library. Panchito had privately thought of a name for the band and had brought two extra sombreros to try and convince his friends. He busts open the study room causing his two smaller friends to startle in their seats. Donald falls out of his chair.

“Mis amigos! I have a name for our group!”

Panchito yells and Donald rises back into his seat. José catches the hat that is tossed to him neatly, while Donald is knocked back out of his chair. The rooster rushes over to Donald and helps him up. A librarian comes soon with a look of irritation. José rises and moves to talk to her.

“I am very sorry for my friend, senhorita. He was excited that you have such a great collection of books. He found this one about tubers he had never seen before. We are are all very impressed with the curation here. You do such a wonderful job! Surpreendente.”

The parrot presents a book, seemingly from nowhere. His flattery seems to work, leaving the librarian flustered. She hastily gives them a soft warning and scurries away with a red face. Panchito admires his friend’s ability to talk himself out of trouble. José tosses the book to him, and the rooster happily catches it, as it is something he is genuinely interested in. The three all take a seat and Panchito picks back up his speech before he had tossed the hats.

“I was thinking we could be called the Three Caballeros!”

Donald looks confused while José nods along with the idea.

“The three caba-whats?”  
“The Three Caballeros, cowboys, gentlemen knights!”

The other two agree with the name. The parrot and duck leave the hats on throughout the homework session. The next day the two others bring their sombreros the jam session and Panchito gives the two a large grin.

\---------------------------

Donald leans against the wall of the hall. Della’s voice is clear across the line. It had taken her four weeks to get back with him. The intervals had not been that long during his time in the navy, but he had felt the distance growing steadily. And if that distance with his twin was steady, the distance between him and Scrooge had practically existed the instant he had left the house for the navy. He had never been the closest to his uncle, having been the more cautious of the two twins due to his parent’s deaths. But, it would have been nice to get a call from the man outside of an invitation to adventure. Which is what Della is currently doing. She has been trying for the past half-an-hour to wheedle him into going on some adventure in Russia for some jewel or something, barely taking the time to check on what is going on in his life. He forgives her for the oversite, has always forgiven her for forgetting to ask normal things because their family has never been normal.

“Dells. I can’t come. I have classes. In fact, I need to get going right now because I have a study session for an upcoming test.”

“Can’t you just skip?”

“I can’t skip classes for adventure Dells. Have fun. And please call me more often? You know I worry about you.”

“Of course. I miss having you on adventures Donny.”

“I miss you too. Tell Ol’ Scrooge hello for me. Love you, sis.”

“Yep! Love you too!”

She hangs up first and the duck places the hall phone back into its receiver. He sighs and then grabs his bookbag. He starts out for the library. When he arrives Panchito drags him into a friendly hug.

“You okay Donal’?”

“Yeah. Just missing family I guess.”

Panchito and José nod sympathetically. The rooster begins to chatter about the song lyrics he is currently working on, pulling the duck into the process, effectively removing the frown. Donald admires Panchito’s ability to lighten the mood where ever he is. When the rooster finally coaxes a smile from Donald, José decides that its time to study for the test in the class that they all share. They review the book they had been assigned and discuss the key points from the class. Two hours in, Panchito bounces to his feet.

“Can we pleeeaassee take a break? Estoy muriendo!!”

José rolls his eyes at the rooster’s exuberant antics. Donald smiles stretching his arms. 

“Okay. A quick break won’t kill us, I’m sure.”

The parrot says with a laugh.

“Yes! I’m going to walk around the library!”

The rooster practically bolts from the room. José carelessly leans back and starts chewing gum. He offers some to Donald who shakes his head. Donald leans against the table and closes his eyes. His mind wanders in the comfortable silence, shifting to the sea. It had come to his mind more than once since he had been in school. Splashing waves. Salt thick in the air. Wind dancing through his feathers.

“As you Americans say, penny for your thoughts?”

Donald peaks at his friend who is slowly blowing a bubble. He sighs. José raises an eyebrow.

“I was in the navy. I miss the ocean.”

José nods his head.

“I miss the jungle and the beaches of my home.”

Donald sees kindred homesickness and the silence falls comfortably once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm posting this chapter because I realized I had forgotten to say that this will be updated weekly! I also need to re-edit chapter 1 because it formatted weird. Thank you so much for reading! Thank you for the kind comments!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translation for the chapter  
> Caray-wow

José pops his bubble and taps his umbrella against the floor. It had been a while since Panchito had left. Donald had closed his eyes once more, and José has suspicions that the duck had fallen asleep on the table. The parrot feels admiration for his friend’s ability to get up after every bad day. After that first day, José had not seen Donald break down. Sure the duck got mad and yell, and sometimes there would be a gloomy look, but the duck kept pushing onwards. José is sure if he had been cursed with such dismal luck, he would have given up long ago. Perhaps there is some magic solution to the issue? José contemplates finding a solution to naturally occurring bad luck. This is interrupted by Panchito bursting through the door once more, banging the door open. Donald screeches and flails his arms. He snaps to attention and holds his fists up. Panchito freezes, hands up. Donald blinks and breaths deeply and lowers his fists. 

“Panchito?”

The parrot tries to move the group on from the awkward silence. The rooster’s eyes brighten and he begins to bounce up and down.

“I found a secret passage! Come on!”

José feels excitement. He had never had an adventure before. He rises and snatches up his umbrella.

“Wait! Guys! We have to prepare before jumping right into an adventure.”

José and Panchito turn to the duck who has his hands resting on the table as he stands up. They stand there looking to their friend. The parrot leans on his umbrella and speaks.

“Ok. What should we do?”

The duck looks surprised that they are listening. Panchito shifts from foot to foot but is paying attention.

“Well. We got to make sure not to leave our stuff here. Do any of us have a light source? Rope? First aid?”

Panchito pulls out a lasso. José pulls out a lighter and opens his bag to show off his growing collection of first aid. He had started carrying a greater variety of items since hanging out with Donald. The duck takes a deep breath and brings out a large flashlight from his bag. 

“Alright. Let’s be careful.”

The three-pack up their bags and then follow Panchito to another area of the library. They arrive at the first floor, in the very back of the library. No one else is around. The rooster began to explain how he had found the passage.

“So I tugged on these books and then tapped the wall when I was thinking about some song lyrics to fit with the melody we had created. After the random pattern, part of the wall opened. It resealed after a few minutes when I did not open it wider. Then I went to get you, mis amigos!”

“Do you think you can repeat the pattern?”

José asks, studying the wall. Panchito nods and quickly tugs on the books and taps the wall. Donald grabs ahold of the opened wall and tugs it further open. The three carefully step in. Donald has a slight shake in his left hand that José notes. Panchito is twitching with excitement. José takes a deep breath, tasting the cool dampness of the air. Donald pulls out his flashlight and lights up the passage as the wall creaks shut behind them. Their footsteps echo off the wall as they walk slowly down the hall. They enter into a big chamber. On three of the walls are paintings of three sperate birds who appear to be screaming at each other. Beneath each is a small alcove with small tablets. A book sits on a pedestal in the center of the room. 

\-------------------------------------------------------

“Caray!” 

Panchito soaks in the room. He moves to stand beneath the image of a cardinal. He inspects the tablet, interested in the writing. He hears a call from the parrot and turns back to the center of the room. 

“These are the three founders of our university. Cyancitlo Jay, the blue jay, Ruber Cardnala, the cardinal, and Virdis Finchel, the greenfinch. According to this book, they hated each other. The only reason they made the university together was that the city would not sell the land to just one of them.”

Donald is looking over the parrot’s shoulder while Panchito bounces in front of the two.

“It says they each had an amulet that they used when they fought each other during meetings. They hid them around the university.”

“We should find them!”

José exclaims his eye shining. Panchito feels worry coiling in his stomach. 

“What if…”

Both of his friends look at him and concern paints their faces. 

“What if we find them and they cause us to fight like the founders?”

Donald blinks while José sucks in a breath. 

The duck crosses his arms and holds a hand out to each of his friends. Panchito quickly does the same and José follows suite. The parrot starts off.

“Squak!”

“Crow!”

Panchito responds, a smile beginning to form on his face.

“Quack!”

Donald shouts. Then they yell together, having spent enough time together to predict what the next part is.

“I got your back!”

They all firmly shake, matching smiles on each beak. The two smaller birds then add further words of assurance. Donald starts off.

“I could never hate you guys. I get angry some times, but I would never hate either of you. You take the time to listen to me and understand. All my problems are easier to deal with when you are around.”

José picks up after the duck finishes.

“Both of you are the best friends that I have had. We haven’t known each other for very long but you’re almost like family. You encourage me to follow my interests without looking down on me for my degree choice like most of the people I have met.”

Panchito smiles at the two of them, small tears beginning to form in his eyes.

“You are the best amigos I could have asked for! You let me be myself, even though I know my volume can be a little much sometimes. I don’t want to lose this friendship!”

He tugs the smaller birds into a large tight hug. There is a moment of shared reassurance before they break apart. Donald speaks first.

“Do we want to pursue these amulets?”

Panchito nods and pumps his arm into the air. José makes a noise of agreement. Donald bobs his head. He lifts the book and skims through it a little further. He tosses it carefully to José.

“That page says that each founder hid an amulet underneath their personal landmarks around campus inside of chambers that have various challenges. I have a bit of experience with adventuring, so based on that I think we should focus on each one individually and wait until we fully solve it before we move to the next founder.”

Panchito blinks.

“You have adventured before? My friend! You never told us.”

Donald kicks the floor nervously and mumbles his next few words. Panchito leans in trying to understand his friend. He drops a friendly arm around his shoulder as José moves to stand in front of him. Donald repeats himself a little clear with his head held high.

“My uncle is Scrooge McDuck, and I went on many adventures around the world with him before I joined the navy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Boom! The handshake and plot have been discovered! The art is from my Tumblr! Low key proud!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations for the chapter!  
> es un huevo podrido- is a rotten egg  
> Um dois três- one two three  
> Eu sinto Muito. Por favor, não me odeie- I'm so sorry. Please don't hate me.  
> Eu nunca usaria magia para machucá-lo- I would never use magic to hurt you

Donald looks away from his friends, nervous. Many times when people found out about his Uncle, they would try to get something out of that relationship. Money, normally. José looks at him with awe.

“You must have been so many places! You must tell us about your globetrotting!”

“Si! You must tell us sometime! What is the coolest thing you have seen?”

Donald feels relief flood his stomach. They seemed genuinely interested in what he had done. Not what his uncle is worth or his uncle’s accomplishments. 

“I think the most interesting thing I’ve seen is probably this sword that could control clouds and force them into solid shapes.”

Panchito makes an oohing noise and Donald can feel that he would be telling the story later. 

“So, as our resident expert, which amulet should we seek out first?” 

José winks and closes the book. Donald huffs and glances around. His eyes land on the blue jay and he points. Panchito moves over to stare at the tablet. The two other birds join him. José looks up at the painting. Donald analyzes the tablet. It detailed the jay’s interest in sailing and knowledge of the sea.

“I think his structure was the well on campus. It’s in the painting.”

José taps the frame with his umbrella. Panchito grins and then shouts.

“Last one there es un huevo podrido!”

The rooster rushes back up to the library. Donald looks to the parrot who shrugs and the two of them begin running as well. It does not take very long for them to arrive at the landmark. Donald stumbles and slams his head into one of the six pillars holding up the domed roof over the well’s fountain center. The duck whines in pain as Panchito lifts him back to his feet. José checks his head and declares that there is no blood or obvious bleeding. Donald wriggles out of his taller friends grasp and smooths down his clothes in an attempt to look nonchalant. 

The three of them begin to look around the well to try and figure out what could answer to entering into the hidden chambers beneath. The inside of the domed roof has signal flags carved into it. In the center of the circle of pillars is a fountain that pours water when a button is pressed. Donald narrows his eyes at the off design. Instead of the usual construction of a drinking fountain, the water arches from the fount one of the edges into a moat that surrounds a square, leaving the center dry. The three of them spend a while poking around the well but eventually give up as the hour grows late. They agree to tell the others as soon as they had thought of something.

“Please don’t rush in alone.”

“Of course not Donal’. We are in this together!”

Panchito nods hastily with José’s statement. 

“We are the Three Caballeros! We are in this together!!”

The two hold out their hands and for the second time that day, they do their handshake.

“Squak!”

“Crow!”

“Quack!”  
“I got your back!”

As Donald walks home he smiles quietly to himself. It was nice to have people paying attention to his ideas while adventuring. Normally Scrooge would be the planner and the smart one, able to figure it all on his own. Della would never have agreed to wait, rushing straight into danger. It felt nice to feel necessary. 

\--------------------------

José tugs on his sombrero while he blows a bubble. Donald sits with a new bandage on his knee. They were both waiting for Panchito to arrive before they played the song they had created together.

“Got any ideas about the well?”

“Not yet.”

Donald adjusts his sombrero with a huff. The parrot sees the other fall into deep thought. José taps his fingers against his knee, blowing another bubble. The rooster arrives on the scene, startling José into popping his gum all over his beak. The parrot cleans his beak, wrapping his gum back into its wrapper and tossing it away in a nearby bin.

“Ready to jam mis amigos?!”

Panchito shouts, beaming at his two friends. Donald holds his guitar and José pulls out his accordion. José counts them down.

“Um dois três!”

They begin playing the song that they had written. José falls into the music, dancing around his friends, trading off to his accordion, and then switching back to his flute. At least he had assumed it was his flute. The notes grow fuller. He swings himself around, scratching up the dirt with his feet. He slowly opens his eyes and stops playing when he notices the silence of his companions. A lump of ice falls into his stomach as he realizes he has his umbrella in his hands. He steps backward at the wary look he is getting from Donald. Panchito is openly staring. He takes another step backwards. The parrot feels like throwing up. He had not meant to share this secret so soon.

“Eu sinto Muito. Por favor, não me odeie.”

His brain freezes, forgetting the proper English words to convey how apologetic and worried he is. His eyes begin to blur as he clenches his fist. Donald looks conflicted while Panchito seems to shift into fascination.

“That’s so cool José! What else can you do? The sound is so clear!”

The duck takes his own step back as Panchito throws an arm around José. The parrot looks to his duck friend, sorrow dripping through him at the wariness that is painted there. He trys to form words, to salvage this with his tongue like he normally would.

“Eu nunca usaria magia para machucá-lo, Donal’.”

The parrot mumbles out, knowing the words are wrong as they slip out. Panchito seems to realize the tension, tugging José into a tight side hug. José wants to grab his duck friend, assure him that he would never hurt either of them with his magic, promise to not show it again, anything to make his friend stop looking at him with fear. Panchito suddenly speaks.

“Donal’. José has always had your back. He’s the one who has the bandages for whenever either of us gets hurt. Magic doesn’t keep him from being the person you know.”

José watches as Donald’s left-hand trembles. The duck shifts a little closer to the other two. Panchito keeps speaking.

“I use a magic serape back at home. Does that make me less trustworthy? Donal’?”

The duck opens and closes his bill. José watches listlessly, not very hopeful that this situation will end positively. He pushes through his panic to mumble.

“Sorry.”

He can hear Donald suck in a deep breath and he closes his eyes, wanting to put up a barrier between himself and the barrage of words that he is sure will follow.

“My adventures have led to me having a lot of negative interactions with magic users. And it’s hard not to let that influence me. Getting tossed around, electrocuted, and hit aren’t necessarily the best things. But Panchito’s right. You’re there for me. My, um what you guys always say? Amigo?”

José opens his eyes to Donald inching closer. The parrot holds out a hand. Donald keeps moving slowly closer, confidence beginning to build in his voice. 

“The music did sound pretty cool. And it would be a bit weird to hate magic and be seeking out three magic amulets with you.”

Donald is close enough to grab José’s hand. He grips it. José breaths deeply. The three stand there for a second. Donald begins speaking again.

“I’m sorry I freaked out José. I hope you still want to hang out.”

José shakes his head, straightening his back, and feels warmth beginning to replace the ice in his stomach.

“Não. Apologies are not necessary.”

Panchito nods as the two of them shake hands. The rooster leans down, picking up the umbrella. The parrot releases Donald to accept his umbrella back. Donald lifts his guitar and Panchito follows suit. The two of them look to José who gives a shaky smile before strumming his umbrella. Panchito throws his head back and crows and they begin to play again. 

\-----------------------------------

Panchito twirls his pencil, trying to focus on his homework. A burst of laughter can be heard from down the hall. For once he is ahead on assignments and is on the last problem for the work that is due next week. He scratches down an answer and re-examines his work. There is a knock on his open door. A wolf from down the hall pops his head in.

“You have a call. Good luck understanding the guy though, I barely could make out your name on the third go-around. It might not even be for you.”

The wolf shrugs with a laugh and Panchito stands and walks to the phone.

“Hola? Panchito speaking.”

“Finally! You have some real knuckleheads in your dorm. Laughing it up over my voice.”

Panchito feels fire in his veins as he responds, glancing around at the heads staring out from dorm rooms.

“Sorry bout that amigo. You’d think that people they let in this school would be smarter chicos.”

He aims a death glare at those he can see sniggering and they turn pale as the see how angry the rooster is. Multiple doors close after the occupants’ faces flush with embarrassment.

“It’s all good Panchito. Anyways, I was calling to let you know I think I’ve figured out something with the well. Bring your lasso and anything you feel would be useful.”

“Okay. I’ll grab some food and a backpack. Meet you at the well in ten minutos. Will you call José?”

“Yep. That was the plan buddy. See you there.”

Panchito hangs up and moves to his dorm room. He grabs his stuff and key, locking the dorm room behind himself. The sun is starting to set as he exits the dorm. The fall air is crisp and cooler than what he is used to. He hums to himself, bubbly excitement flowing through his veins. He is the first to arrive at the well. Sitting down, the rooster leans against a pillar. Soon in the distance, he spots a light moving steadily towards him. 

“Amigo?!”

He calls out into the darkening day. He gets a response equal in volume.

“Hey, Panchito!”

“Donal’ mi amigo! What have you figured out?”

The duck reaches him with a sparkle in his blue eyes that Panchito had yet to see.

“Let’s wait for José. I want to tell you both at the same time!”

The rooster sees the duck bounce on his webbed feet, far more excited than Panchito had ever seen him in the month and a half that they had been in school. Panchito grins at his friend. The third Caballero approaches with a friendly wave. 

“Olá mis amigos!”

José greets. Donald seems to be unable to hold himself back any longer. 

“I figured it out! So you know the signal flags carved into the dome, right? Well, I was thinking about it, and I realized that all of them are there except for one. Uniform. Which means you are running into danger. We had to learn them in the navy.” 

Panchito nods along to the explanation. José’s eyes alight with realization. 

“The rectangle in the center of the fountain is where the missing flag is supposed to be!”

The three move to stand around the central fountain. Donald presses the button and water flows out. He then dips a finger into the water and draws a cross and fills in two corner squares with the water. The well begins to shake and the three of them are dropped down into a black abyss. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some drama but also the start of the first adventure!!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter translations!  
> mis hermanos-My brothers

Having fallen into many pits of darkness when he had been adventuring, Donald had grown uncomfortably familiar with the feeling of his stomach lurching around his insides. That’s not to say that he did not scream. He matched the screams of his companions equally. But it does mean he held on to his wits more firmly as the three birds slam into a coursing body of water. He keeps a firm grip on his flashlight and pushes up to the surface. Sputtering out water, he begins to call for his friends but he gets no answer, The rapid river flows into a wall, slamming the duck and dragging him back under. He catches a flash of green and grabs at it with his free hand. Donald is slapped in the face by a flailing arm. He grabs the limb. He kicks to the surface and tosses his parrot friend to the bank. José gasps and clutches at Donald’s sleeve. 

“Donal’??”

The duck places the flashlight into his hand and then dives back into the rushing water, chased under by José screaming out to him. Slicing through the cold water, Donald can feel that he is in his element. The is a grate that he can feel through which the river continues to flow. The water is trying to pin him there, so Panchito must be somewhere on the grate. He kicks against the pressure, the dark swirling water burning his eyes as he looks through it. There! A spot of red against the gray of the grate. He snags his friend who tightly grabs ahold of him. The duck pushes upwards, bubbles swirling about him. He can see a wavery, diluted light ahead. Busting through the surface he catches the end of a scream from José. The parrot is shining the flashlight on the surface of the water. His hand is outstretched and Donald grips it. The two work together to get Donald and Panchito out of the water. The rooster is gasping in air. Donald collapses and sucks in deep breaths. José is worriedly looking over the two of them. 

“Are we good José?”

Donald mumbles staring at the ceiling. The parrot leans back with a sigh.

“Cold. Wet. A bit shocked, but no bruises, cuts, or obvious broken bones. Let’s just rest a bit before trying to push on.”

“Reasonable.”

Panchito croaks out, shivering as his breath begins to even out. Donald bobs his head and closes his eyes. He sighs, before lifting himself into a sitting position. José still looks rather frightened. Donald decides to take a page out of Panchito’s book and pulls the parrot into a side hug. José relaxes marginally. The rooster begins to sing the song they had created together from his spot on the ground.

“We’re three Caballeros. Three brave Caballeros. They say we are birds of a feather!”

Donald picks up the song as Panchito sits up.

“We’re happy amigos. No matter where he goes.The one, two, and three goes. We're always together.”

Panchito begins singing again and Donald can see the warming effect it seems to be having on José. 

“We're three happy chappies, with snappy serapes. You'll find us beneath our sombreros. We're brave and we'll stay so. We're bright as a peso.”

Donald yells his line. 

“Who says so?!”

He gets a response from both of his friends.

“We say so!”

With this, they all jump up and sing together.

“The three Caballeros!”

They stop there, hands joined in the now-familiar handshake. 

“Squak!”

“Crow!”

“Quack!”  
“I got your back!”

Donald feels ready to take on the world with his two best friends at his side. He grins at the two of them, matching grins shining on their beaks. Absently he notes that this is the most confident he has felt on an adventure in a long time. 

\--------------------------------------------------

José is the first to suggest that they should keep moving. Panchito quickly agrees and Donald nods along. The duck picks up the flashlight and they begin to move forwards. José grips his umbrella tightly and he notes that Panchito has brought out his lasso and is holding it. They were as ready as they could be. The trio soon arrives in a rather large chamber. In the center, an amulet with a blue gem sits around the crest of a stone wave. A small pile of golden coins lay at the base of the statue. José quickly notes words that are along the roof of the chamber but is unable to fully read them as water begins to swirl around. He sees Donald settle into a fight stance. As the water forms into a serpentine dragon creature, José raises his umbrella. He sees Panchito beginning to swing his lasso. The easter style dragon roars, rattling the three birds feathers. Donald replies with a screech of his own, rushing forwards and leaping up to punch the dragon in the face. José takes a second to admire the bravery of his friend before he swings his umbrella with a musical hum to give it a magical boost at the dragon’s front legs. Donald is knocked against the wall. Panchito gets his lasso over the thing’s neck and leaps on its back with a shout. 

“OYE! Get away from mis hermanos!”

The words are close enough that José catches the rooster’s meaning. He smiles to himself as he swings his umbrella at its head. Donald dives back into the fray, seemingly enraged. This gives José a moment to look back up to the words, figuring that they will be the key to stopping this dragon. 

“Donal’! Do the words ‘What do we do with a drunken sailor?’ mean anything to you?”

The duck seems to react automatically to the words, a gusto of song spilling from his beak as his fists are still flying. José can tell he is not even thinking through the question that had been posed. 

“What will we do with a drunken sailor? What will we do with a drunken sailor? What will we do with a drunken sailor? Early in the morning!”

The beast shakes its head back and forth knocking Panchito off. Its movements, however, are a bit slower. Donald continues to belt out the song. Panchito rethrows his lasso, looping it around the beast’s legs. The dragon trips. José begins playing his umbrella to match his friend’s song. 

“Way hay and up she rises! Way hay and up she rises! Way hay and up she rises! Early in the morning!

Panchito seems to catch onto the effect that the song is having on the dragon and begins to respond to the first line of each stanza on each repeat and change on the last line. The rooster also begins to sing the chorus fully with Donald who still seems lost in his rage. 

“Shave his belly with a rusty razor!” 

“Shave his belly with a rusty razor! Shave his belly with a rusty razor! Early in the morning! Way hay and up she rises! Way hay and up she rises! Way hay and up she rises! Early in the morning!

The dragon is slumped over and Donald seems to be coming back to himself as his rage falters. José taps his foot as he keeps playing and the dragon’s eyes begin to slip closed. Donald continues to sing loudly with Panchito’s voice playing a supporting role.

“That's what we do with a drunken sailor! That's what we do with a drunken sailor! That's what we do with a drunken sailor! Early in the morning! Way hay and up she rises! Way hay and up she rises! Way hay and up she rises! Early in the mooooorrrnniiinnnggg!”

Each bird holds the last note in their own way, José on his umbrella and the other two with their voices. The dragon dissolves back into normal water, losing all shape. There is silence in the chamber afterward. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I didn’t realize this would become a kind of songfic? It kinda just happened on its own. Anyways, thank you so much for reading! And commenting! And the kudos! I love to interact, so feel free to message me either here or on my Tumblr: hermesserpent-stuff! I’m always very happy to talk about stories or anything else! Please don’t feel intimidated! I have a solid plan for these amulets so stay tuned for the adventures these boys are about to undertake!   
> I know this update is a bit early, but I couldn’t help but share what I had! Hope thats alright with ya’ll! See ya next week!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Translations:  
> Pijamada- Slumber party  
> Lindo dragón- cute dragon  
> Muy bonito- very pretty

Panchito speaks first, his heart racing in his chest.

“That. Was. Impresionante!!! José, that was such quick thinking! You noticed the details that we missed!”

The rooster then turns to the duck wanting his friends to know his admiration.

“And you, Donal’! You had the solution and great fighting skills!”

The parrot speaks up with a large grin on his beak.

“Don’t forget yourself, amigo! Such ropework! You kept the dragon off me long enough for me to think through the details!”

Donald nods in agreement. The three of them stand there with matching Chesire cat grins. Panchito can feel himself slowly falling from the adrenaline high. He breaths and throws his head back in a crow. The others burst into giggles, seemingly affected by the adrenaline fall as well. Donald seems to recover first. 

“So. Who’s gonna take the amulet?” 

Panchito looks to José who seems to be having the same thought as him. They both nod and step back from the wave statue. They speak in sync.

“You.”

Panchito can see the other beginning to protest, and he is glad that José speaks up.

“You figured the clue out from the well. And the only reason we beat the dragon was because you knew the song! We relied on your knowledge so much for this venture!”  
Panchito desides to step in.

“You saved us in that river. I have no idea how to swim.”

“Neither do I. You saved us from drowning!”

Donald looks away in clear embarrassment. Panchito gets the impression that the duck does not often receive praise.

“Well, if you guys say so.”

The two birds beam, speaking once more in sync.

“We say so.”

Donald snorts and waddles over to the wave. He gently removes the amulet, which glows blue. His feathers begin to glow as well when he slips the amulet over his head. The glow fades into a faint, faint blue at the tips of the feathers on his fingers, barely noticeable. He smiles at his two friends. Panchito bounces over to his side to start examining the find. José joins them and they all freeze as the ground begins to rise. They are lifted upwards into the fresh air. The rooster sweeps up the gold that had risen with him into his bag telling the others that they will divide it later together. They step away from the statue and the wave slides back down, leaving the space looking as if the adventure had never happened. Panchito recognizes it as his side of campus. He can feel the late hour beginning to drag on him.

“My roommate is never in and tomorrow is Sunday. My dorm is just over there. Want to have a… What’s the word? Pijamada? Sleep party?”

Donald blinks at him seeming to process his words and attempt to come up with a solution.

“A sleepover.”

Panchito nods. The two other birds look at each other and nod. Donald tucks his amulet away, agreeing to a closer examination by all three at a later time. The trio stumbles to Panchito’s dorm room. Panchito is grateful for the extra pillows and blankets his mother had insisted that he take to school. He is also happy that he has extra towels for his friends to dry off with. The three birds gained a few weird looks but they ignore it. José checks the two over once more before they settle in for the night. He wraps up a cut that Donald had received. Panchito smiles to himself and joins his friends on the floor. The band ends up sleeping until the early afternoon of the next day. 

\--------------------------------------------------------

Donald rubs his amulet through his shirt thinking about the next founder they should attempt to solve. It had been about a week since the “Blue Dragon Venture”, as Panchito called it. They had divided the gold the next day when they had gotten up. He enters the park. The three had agreed to meet in the park to take advantage of the nicer weather. It is about a week before fall break. He is the first there. He sits against a tree in the park and he pulls out his amulet. Its silver chain with a blue gem inlaid into a silver holder. He knew that it had some kind of mystical power. With everything he knew about Cyancitlo Jay, the original owner of the amulet, he would not be surprised if it had something to do with water control. Donald rubs his knee absent-mindedly, wincing as he comes into contact with a new cut that he had forgotten about. 

His mind wanders back to the “Blue Dragon Venture”. It was the first time he had done an adventure without Della or Scrooge. He had always felt in the way of his family members when he was on adventures. He brushes his blue dusted fingertips across the ground as his mind wanders. This time around he had felt useful, central even, to the adventure, which was a pleasant change. He had missed some aspects of adventuring while in the navy, like the rush that comes with fighting with a monster. Absently, Donald hums a sea shanty to himself. His musings are interrupted by a tapping noise.

“Donal’. I don’t wish to alarm you but you have water swirling over your hands.”

The duck freezes at José’s words. He looks down and sees his hands glowing softly, water coiling around the tips of his wings. 

“Oh.”

José sits down beside him.

“You didn’t know you were doing it, right?”

“No.”

Donald gently shakes his hand, dissolving the spiral of water. He feels worry bubbling in his stomach. José pats his back. 

“Want to talk about it?”

“I, I dont know. I don’t have much positive experience with magic.”

“I can check that the amulet is not cursing you, if you would like?” 

Donald feels dumb that he had not even considered the possibility of a curse. He nods and watches as his friend closes his eyes and starts humming. José stands and dances a little before tapping Donald in the center of his chest. He can feel a tingle glance across his feathers. 

“Well, no curse. You do have an attunement to it though. Which means you can use its powers. I’m attuned to my umbrella. Don’t be scared to use it a little Donal’. From what I can sense it gives control over water.”

Donald nods in understanding. He shakily attempts to pull the water from the ground. José silently sits back down beside him, watching. The water swirls upwards and slowly solidifies, looking like a smaller version of the dragon. Donald laughs nervously as it crawls into his palm. José holds up his umbrella and begins to softly play one of their songs. Donald quietly sings to the tiny dragon, who coos up and him and curls into a ball in his hands. The duck hears footsteps and looks up. Panchito waves at the two of them and then spots the small dragon.

“Aww. Lindo dragón!”

Donald smiles and holds out the small creature. Carefully the band passes around the tiny creature. Donald takes it back after a few minutes and it dissolves back into liquid. 

“Muy bonito, Donal’.”

Panchito says with a grin. Donald stands, straightening his shirt.

“I think that's one of the coolest things I’ve done. Thanks, José.”

“Your welcome.” 

The three begin to work on homework, having a pleasant time in each other’s company in the afternoon sun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little display of the amulet's power. I have plans for each of the amulets. Choosing their powers has been pretty fun for me. Do you think you can guess the other two? Also, poor Donald, having to deal with magical attacks so often in the past.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No translations. :)

Three days before fall break José brings up looking into the next founder’s amulet. They had all been swept away by exams and finally had a breather. José and Panchito were staying on campus over the break and Donald planned on going home. Panchito agrees that they should try for one more before Donald is separated from them. They end up in the “Founders Chamber”, as José had dubbed it, that afternoon with all of their adventuring gear. The parrot suggests that they investigate the bell tower that is pictured with Ruber Cardnala. Donald agrees and they read his tablet. José notes with interest that the cardinal had a fascination with plants and soil. He knows that it probably would be important to solving the entrance and insides of the chambers. The trio arrives at the tower and begins to investigate it. No one is around, giver that the tower is on the edge of campus and it is later in the day. José points out the detail that he notices.

“Look at this writing on this door-shaped piece of metal. Some sort of poem. ‘Through the year there are seasons four. Each important to the farmer’s core. One must respect the weather that the four bring. Especially bowing to that of Spring.’ Does that make any sense.?”

The other two birds respond with head shakes. José wanders around the base of the tower taking note of the multiple carvings of plants. He catches Panchito quizically looking at the carvings.

“Got something amigo?”

Panchito blinks and shakes his head. 

“Um. Maybe? I just noticed that each side of the tower has carvings of crops on the base of each side. Most of the crops on each side match with the rest, based on harvest season. Except for one on each side?”

Donald looks at Panchito.

“I think that’s part of the solution! Do you think you can press the wrong crops based on the season they should be harvested in?”

“Si. But what season do I start with?”

José speaks up again.

“Spring? Its the only named season on the metal panel.”

The rooster nods. He moves around the base of the tower, pressing on each out of place carving. He ends on the side with the metal door and the trio stare as it slowly creaks open. Donald turns on his light and the three enter shoulder to shoulder. The door shuts behind them.

\--------------------------------------------------

Panchito blinks in surprise at the room they find at the bottom of the stairs. The walls are lined with little drawers, each with a label. Donald trips, dropping the light. It shatters, and from what Panchito can hear, it seems that the duck has fallen into the shards. He hears an ‘fft’ noise and spots a small flame coming from José’s lighter. The duck groans from his place on the floor. Panchito recalls how the room had looked before they had lost light and grabs an unlit torch from the wall by leaning to his right. He hears José’s voice from beside him.

“Donald, don’t move! We need to get more light so you don’t cut yourself.”

The duck responds with a pained affirmative. 

“José. I have a torch.”

The small flame is brought close to him and the rooster carefully lights his torch, the amount they can see increases ten times. Panchito takes in the sight of his friend sprawled on the floor, worry filling his gut. 

“Donal’?”

“Yep. Still conscious.”

It seems like an automatic response to a common question. The rooster does not like the feeling that thought gives him. José speaks up.

“If you can sit up and move backward, there are no shards behind you. Panchito, can you hand me the torch? I think there is one to my left. I’ll give you my lighter”

The two other birds obey and the room becomes even more well lit. José leaves the newly lit torch on the wall and uses the first one to kneel beside Donald. Panchito watches as the parrot checks over the duck. Donald has three pieces of glass in his face and three or four in each hand. Panchito moves to sweep the glass into a corner of the room and uses José’s lighter to light the two other torches in the room. He glances back at his friends. Donald seems fine, arguing softly that José is worrying too much. José is pulling out the last piece of glass. He disinfects the wound and bandages it while pointing out the dangers of infection to the duck. The rooster begins to inspect the room carefully, knowing that the sooner they get out of here, the sooner they can check on Donald properly. His two friends rise and come stand next to him. He passes José his lighter back. The labels on the drawers seem to coincide with crop names. Slowly he reads each one, figuring that one must be out of place. There! A plant that does not exist. Rocky weed. He grabs the drawer firmly and pulls it towards himself. A small section of the wall moves and a passage lays before them. He glances at Donald. 

“Are you okay enough to take on what’s in this room?”

The duck nods, raising his bandaged hands into fists.

“Ducks don’t back down.”

“Okay.”

The trio enters the hall, lit by their single flickering torch. At the end, they arrive in another chamber, this one with the amulet around the stem of a small stone flower that is on a pedestal that is carved to look like a pile of rocks. Upon stepping into the chamber, the dirt floor begins to tremble. Panchito pulls out his lasso as a large vine begins to rise from the ground. Dirt also begins to swirl around the room, solidifying around the vine into a large mountain lion that towers above them. Panchito has a flashback to the mountain lion that had plagued his father’s ranch a few years back. It had been terrifying hunting that thing down and it had been normal-sized. The earthen creature screeches, a sound best described as a mixture of a roar and a rockslide. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little more insight into the past of two of our bois! Also, the second amulet is getting hunted down!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hermano-brother  
> Irmãos- brothers  
> Lo siento- Sorry.

Donald doges the massive paw that is flying towards his face. He spins and lands a solid punch. Dirt goes flying off of the vine, but then it comes back thicker than before. He yells out this observation.

“It gets tougher the more you hit it.”

José blocks a hit with his umbrella and Panchito yanks the parrot to a safer position.

“Then what do we do?”

The duck twists away from another paw, not sure how to deal with something he cannot beat up. He tries to think. 

“Maybe fire works against it? I don’t know, I’ve never fought something like this.”

He squeaks out as he is slammed into a wall. Panchito yanks him to his feet while José rushes forward with the torch, swinging it at the side of the beast. The creature twists and attempts a bite attack which just misses the parrot. Panchito tries to tangle its legs with his rope but the legs dissolve and reform out of the loop of the lasso. Donald sees this as the creature screeches. Every second that they fight it seems to grow larger. Dirt flies into his eyes as he is slammed once again against the wall. Panchito slides beneath the beast tripping it up. It seems the best they can do at this point is trip it so that it can not get any firm hits on them. But while the trio tired, the beast seems to grow stronger. José pants as slides to stand beside Donald.

“We can’t do this forever. Something has to give, amigo.”

“The fire seemed to bother it. Try that again?”

Donald gets a nod and José swipes once more at the side of the beast. It howls and twists to face the parrot. Donald chucks some loose stones at its head to try to get its attention. It swings its paws once more and he ducks. Vaguely he notes that none of its attacks had made use of its tail. A loud roar rattles his thoughts. He responds in kind, feeling his blood begin to bubble in rage at this beast that is threatening his brothers. He swings around its legs, tripping it up. José swings the torch at it again. It screeches in rage and annoyance. It twists and scoops José into its mouth. The light that they had been using to see is gone. Donald and Panchito freeze.

“Brother!”

“Hermano!”

They both scream into the darkness. The beast roars, spitting flame out. This has the side effect of lighting the torches that are lining the walls of the chambers. Donald rushes to Panchito, stealing his lasso and ties it to the base of the stone statue. He ties the other end to himself.

“I’m going in for José! Something is up with this thing’s tail!”

And with that, the duck leaps at the things face and forces his way down its throat. 

\--------------------------------------

José gasps in pain as he is squished on all sides by dirt and is burned by his torch. The light goes out soon, suffocated by the earth. He feels a vine move below his back and he squirms. He can hear the world outside of the creature. He hears the call of his irmãos. Choking he calls out to them through the dirt and plant.

“Irmãos! Be careful!!”

The parrot spits out the dirt that enters his mouth and squirms harder. Maybe he could disrupt this monstrosity from the inside. He manipulates his umbrella into his hands and begins to play the flute on it. He focuses on his magic pushing outwards, keeping the dirt off himself and out of his mouth. A small amount of space is formed, enough for him to sit up in the darkness. He feels something land beside him.

“José, it’s me.”

The parrot shifts key, the only acknowledgment he is able to give Donald without losing control of his magic. Donald seems to understand this and continues talking.

“I have Panchito’s lasso around my waist.”

José shifts down a key. He can sense the beast’s insides expanding further. Donald hooks an arm around him as the creature begins to violently shake. They hear the now familiar grito of Panchito. The earthen lion bursts apart and they are left beneath a pile of dirt. José is so surprised by the sudden drop to the floor that he stops playing. The two birds are slowly tugged into the open air by Panchito who has pulled them out using his end of the lasso. The rooster drops the rope and loops his arms around them when they are freed. 

“Mis hermanos, pensé que estaban muertos!”

The rooster is crying. José pats his arm as best he can while held in such a tight hug. Donald buries his face into the hug, his left hand violently shaking. José soaks in just how alive they all are. They stay in this pile, all shaken from the experience. José begins quietly speaking, hoping that a verbal reminder will help his friends realize that they are all okay.

“That was pretty intense. A little harder than the water dragon, but less scary than the river.”

He gets a noise of agreement from Panchito. Donald picks up the talk, less rattled than before.

“You did a great job Panchito. You got the thing to crumble while José kept us safe on the inside with his magic.”

The rooster nods while breathing deeply. He seems to steady himself. José hums quietly, pulling a little more on his exhausted magic to perform the same spell he had used on Donald so long ago. This seems to help the rooster shake off the last bit of fear. Panchito gently releases them from the hug and wipes his eyes.

“Lo siento. I guess it freaked me out more than it should have when I saw both of you disappear. All I could do was hope that Donald had been right about the tail as I yanked it out of the ground.”

The duck shakes his head.

“Don’t be sorry for being worried. The fact that you care and you pushed through it for us is what matters. We could have been really hurt. I know I complain a lot, but being worried over feels nice. So thank you Panchito. And you too José.”

The parrot pats the duck’s arm.

“I’m still checking you over when we get out of here.”

“Phooey.”

The parrot continues speaking turning to the rooster.

“And, Panchito, thank you. You definitely saved both of our tail feathers.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The second monstrosity has been defeated by our heroes! Thank you so much for reading! I don’t know if this is considered poor form, but please consider checking out my Tumblr and youtube! My Tumblr is hermesserpent-stuff. It’s where the drawing for this chapter is from! My youtube is just Hermes Serpent. I publish animatics sometimes! I currently have two for our trio and am trying to figure out a third! I appreciate any interaction!   
> Thank you all so much for the comments and kudos! I really enjoy working on this story and talking with people! Apologies for the sporadic updates. I just wanted to share what I have before I outline any further on my own.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translation:   
> Uma ideia adoráve- a lovely idea  
> Hermanos- brothers  
> Sim- yes

Having fully calmed down, Panchito now looks around the room. The dirt that had once been the monster and had entrapped his friends beneath had transformed into gold when the monster had crumbled. 

“Donald. José. Look!”

He bounces to his feet, once more excited about the adventure. The other two birds join him by the pile and they chatter excitedly over it. He takes off his empty book bag and they work together to fill it. It just barely holds it all. 

“We can split it when we get above ground again.”

The two others nod, familiar with the process from last time. Then the group turns to look at the amulet. José and Donald step back and signal him forward with matching grins.

“You did most of the heavy lifting on this one Panchito. You take it.”

José states with Donald nodding in agreement. The rooster steps forward and gently lifts the bronze amulet that has a red jewel inlay from the flower’s stem. A red glow envelops him and he can feel a tingle in his feathers. Dirt begins to swirl and he can feel himself slowly gaining control over it. The light begins to die down and his white finger feathers take on a dusting of red. After nothing else happens the trio decides to exit the way that they came in. The journey back is far easier than the journey in. 

“What powers do you think the amulet has?”

Donald asks. José speaks up.

“I can use my magic to figure it out.”

Panchito nods. 

“Do you guys want to do another sleepover?”

Privately he hopes they say yes, despite the next day being another class day. He still felt uneasy about them being swallowed. The rooster could feel the nightmares that he would likely get tonight and had no desire to face them alone. He catches José giving him a concerned look. The parrot tugs Panchito into a side-hug. 

“Uma ideia adorável. Yes. My classes start at 11 on Thursdays.”

Donald moves to his other side and nods avidly.

“Yeah! My classes start at 9:00, but I can get up early. I can think of nothing better to do than have a sleepover with my, er, hermanos?”

“Sim, we are irmãos.”

Panchito brightens at this, feeling relieved that his friends are staying. He also feels warm and fuzzy at the familial terms being aimed at him. Panchito appreciates Donald using his language. He throws his arms around his brothers and they walk together to his room. 

\--------------------------------------------

Donald rechecks his bag, making sure he has everything he needs for his week at home from school. He had spent the last two nights over at Panchito’s helping the others cope with nightmares. Panchito had been the worst affected, constantly checking on them during the night. The second night had been smoother and José promised to look after the rooster until he felt well enough to be alone. After getting to the dorm, Donald had been thoroughly checked over by the parrot and had gotten new bandages for his face and hands that he is still sporting. The parrot had also checked over Panchito’s amulet and found that it had control over dirt and soil, with slight influences over plants. The rooster had managed to create a tiny mountain lion when they had sat in the park on Thursday. They had also split the treasure evenly. 

The gold coins from the two adventures currently lie in the bottom of his bag, ready to be hidden in his room at home. He had never been able to keep things from his adventures with Scrooge, all of it going straight to the money bin. But now, he has a small fortune and an attuned magic amulet. He makes sure the amulet is tucked beneath his shirt and goes outside to wait for his bus to pick him up. He sits on a short half-wall next to the street and the bus sign. When it arrives, he quickly pays and settles into a seat. The world rushes by his window. He is excited to see his uncle and sister. 

He walks up the long hill from the bus stop to the manor, reminding himself what he cannot talk about. Not a word about the founder’s hidden secrets. Not a mention of the amulet resting around his kneck. He does not want Della to get jealous that he is adventuring with other people. He also wants to make sure his uncle does not take away his amulet. His left-hand trembles a little as he thinks it all over and he tries to shake the tremors by clenching his hand around his bag’s strap. He breathes. Time to see his family.

As soon he is in the mansion he is greeted with hugs and smiles and is given a minute to put his bag in his room. Then he is immediately swept away into an adventure, like he had never left. On one hand, it is comforting to slot right back into place but on the other it is fairly annoying. He had grown used to at least a little prep time before barrelling out towards danger. It also kind of hurts that no one has taken the time to ask how he had been or details about what his life in college is like. Donald quickly moves past it, having grown used to this behavior in his family. Adventure before the mundane. 

He ends up reopening the cuts on his hands and gains some rope burns over them. He goes back to feeling in the way, accidentally activating traps as he trips. Scrooge discovers the answer to the puzzle before he can think through it. Della bolts ahead, finding her way to the treasure without needing his help. Silently he misses José’s post-adventure check-up and Panchito’s ability to still his nerves and bring a smile to his bill. Donald also misses the near-constant song. He finds himself singing more than once. His uncle politely but pointedly tells him to stop. ‘Lad I love you, but your voice is not helping the situation.’ He had honestly forgotten that it was a bother while he had been away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this kinda ended on a sad note. I’m gonna give you guys a bit of warning that Della and Scrooge have their own issues going on for the next couple chapters. I don’t mean to upset anyone! It just kind of happened?


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:  
> Familia- family

José leans against Panchito’s wall the two of them working on some more song lyrics. It had been three days since the fall break had begun and they had heard nothing from Donald. Every couple of minutes the rooster would get up to walk around, claiming it helped him think a little clearer. During one of these walkarounds, he freezes and rushes to his desk. José watches with some interest as he pulls out the bag of dirt he had started to keep at his desk. The parrot stands next to him as he spreads out the dirt. The rooster’s hands begin to glow red and he places them on either side of the dirt. Suddenly the two birds can see an image of Donald. The duck looks just as surprised as José feels.

“Donal’?”

“Hey guys, what are you doing in my sink?”

Donald questions clearly confused. Panchito turns to José, eyes wide. The parrot tries to think through it.

“I’m not sure. Donal’, what were you doing right before you saw us?”

Donald runs a hand through his head feathers. He leans against the counter. José narrows his eyes at a bruise that is purpling around his eye. 

“I was just thinking about how nice it’s going to be to sleep in my room, in my own hammock. I was also thinking about how I was going to call you guys now that I’m at home again”

José snaps his fingers.

“That’s it. Your amulet reacted to your thoughts and communicated to Panchito’s amulet. We’re talking to you through a patch of dirt.”

“My amulet started giving me a...sensación de hormigueo...er, tingle? That’s why I got the dirt out.”

Donald gives them a broad smile.

“Well, I’m real glad to see you guys! Give me a second. I’m going to transfer you to a bowl.”

The image wavers and Panchito does the same, pulling out his own bowl. They settle on the floor while they watch Donald move into his room and lock his door.

“So what’s cooking Donal’?”

This gets José a chuckle from the duck. 

“Well, we just wrapped up an adventure in Africa. Gosh, I missed having you guys on the adventure. What have you guys been up to?”

“Right now, we were working on music, trying to make something in Spanish. Nothing else has really been going on.”

Panchito says. The three of them chatter excitedly, going over lyrics and other things. Donald talks a little about his sister. He describes her reckless attitude but pairs it with his love for her and his admiration at her skills. José shares about his family back in Brazil. About the older and younger sisters who were always getting into or getting out of trouble. Panchito chimes in with a story about his older brother. He had gotten them stuck out in the dark of the large ranch, cold and scared. They spend several hours speaking into the bowls, enjoying the company.

\-------------------------------------------------

Panchito anxiously strums his guitar. He and José are waiting near Donald’s dorm for the duck to return to campus. They had radio silence from their friend since talking to him through the bowl until the night before when they had received a phone call. The rooster knows that he is being overly clingy but he is eager to see his friend once more. He had experienced waking up to a nightmare of Donald and José dying inside of the mountain lion or all three of them drowning in that raging river more than once. The parrot had been there most times, but the fear still lingers. José is beside him on the brick half-wall, tapping his umbrella. The rooster sees the parrot re-smooth his shirt for the fifth time in the last minute, a nervous tick of José’s that Panchito had picked up on.

A long black car pulls up nearby and Donald steps out with his bag. Panchito leaves his guitar on the wall and scoops up his smaller friend. He twirls Donald in the air, excited to see his friend alive after so many visions of his destruction. He gently places the duck down after a tight hug. José pulls him into his own loose hug and then begins worrying over the new injuries. Panchito watches with a broad smile as the parrot scolds Donald and starts cleaning and dressing the cuts and smoothing feathers. The three stand in a tight group, the rooster and parrot completely focused on the duck. The rooster wraps one arm around each of his friends. Panchito asks Donald how he is doing and the duck responds in the positive. Donald is smiling at all of the attention even as he tries to get away from José’s mother henning. The rooster only looks back to the car when he hears an ‘Ahem.’ A female duck stands there next to an older duck, presumably Donald’s family.

“Hola. I am Panchito Romero Miguel Junipero Francisco Quintero González Pistoles the third. Friends call me Panchito. You must be his familia!”

Panchito greets without moving. Normally he would shake hands, but he honestly did not feel comfortable leaving Donald’s side. José gives them a half glance and Panchito can see they have been judged by the parrot. Probably not positively, if the extra effort he is putting into fussing over the smallest of injuries to keep from acknowledging them is any indication. The female duck approaches. 

“Donny, why didn’t you tell me about your friends?”

Donald responds.

“Della! I told you about them just yesterday. For the fifth time? These are my bandmates.”

“He’s got you there lass.”

The older duck speaks. José finally runs out of things to bandage and turns slightly to address the other ducks. 

“I am José Carioca. You must be Donald’s Uncle Scrooge. I’ve heard so much about your assistance in Donald’s adventures”

The older duck looks distinctly ruffled and Panchito holds down a laugh. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof. José doesn’t like Donald’s family. I’ll explain why, don’t worry! I originally intended for them all to get along, but then the characters started taking over when I was writing, and this is what we got!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Não, senhorita- No, miss  
> desculpe meu irmão- sorry my brother  
>  es un huevo podrido- is a rotten egg

Donald enjoys his brother’s attention. While he had attempted to escape José’s care, his tail’s wagging betrays his enjoyment about being cared about. He giggles to himself at the look that Scrooge gets at José’s comment. The old duck seems to be at a loss of words. For once his uncle does not take the show through his fame alone. Della pipes up again and Donald gets a distinct feeling that she is not pleased.

“So Donny, arent you gonna show us around?”

He feels confused, having never agreed to anything of the sort, but decides to roll with it. Panchito loops his arm through his left arm and Della quickly takes his right. He feels perplexed. She rarely did that anymore. José takes up Panchito’s other side and they head off with Uncle Scrooge walking beside them, pausing just long enough for Panchito to swing his guitar onto his back. Donald leads the group to the student center and then the library, speaking casually as they walk past. 

“This is where we typically study. Lots of hours spent here. They have books on just about anything. Hey Panchito, did you ever finish that tuber book?”

He says with a slight smile, elbowing the rooster slightly. He gets a joyful laugh.

“Of course I did mi amigo. It was pretty helpful for my class.”

“Are you studying agriculture?”

Della asks. Panchito nods and Donald listens as his friend happily chats about his degree path as they continue to the next location. Della seems to warm up to the animated rooster, who is winning her over with his happy attitude and naturally friendly nature, but Donald can still sense that she is holding onto some animosity. Donald glances at José who has been pretty quiet. The parrot is looking pensive, chewing silently on some gum. Donald wonders what is bothering his brother. They soon arrive at the well. 

“This is the Well. There is a story that my orientation leader told me, where if you drink from the Well on the day of a final, you’ll get a grade higher than you would have.”

“Interessante. I was told the same story. I know where I’ll be right before finals.”

José says with a hum. There is the slightest smile on his face. Panchito laughs at the joke and Donald joins him.

“I’ll be right there with you, hermano!”

“Me too, pal!”

Uncle Scrooge shakes his head. 

“A bird makes their own fortune.”

“Well, Donny needs all the extra help he can get, even if it is some old school tradition.”

Donald roles his eyes a the light teasing.

“Hardy har, Donald has bad luck. So original Dells.”

“Irmão, what you may have in bad luck, you most certainly make up in bravery.”

Donald shuffles his feet, embarrassed by the parrot’s sincere words. He hears a soft scoff from Della.

“I dunno what Donny’s been telling you about adventures but he’s the most nervous Nellie ever. He never wants to do anything fun during our adventures ”

Donald tugs his arms free of his sister and Panchito and covers his face as the further embarrassment makes him flush red. 

\------------------------------------------------

José can practically feel the bitterness leaking off of the female duck. If he was reading things correctly, she is jealous. That aggressive arm hold, the scrunching eyes, the verbal tear downs, all clear signs of jealousy. The parrot listens to the odd slang term, deciding to repeat it back to her while casually leaning on his umbrella. He takes silent note of his brother’s embarrassed features as he does so.

“Nervous Nellie?”

Della blinks and explains the words.

“Uh, someone who worries too much? He normally is nagging me about one thing or another.”

José pushes down any reaction other than calm, collected, coolness. This is his territory, words, and he was going to wield them like a sword. Cut her to the quick without saying anything against her. He knew Donald would defend his sister, having listened to him talk about her before.

“Oh? I find choosing to warn the people you care for about the dangers their decisions can lead to even when you think it will make them think lesser of you is noble and brave. Donal’ is most certainly brave in my book.”

He hears an embarrassed noise from Donald. Panchito has moved to stand at the duck’s side, a physical sign of support,

“Donal’ has saved me from my own rushing before. It’s nice to be reminded to think about bad ideas.”

José gives a slight smile to the rooster for the supporting words.

“But he does it all the time! It’s lame!”

“Della!”

Scrooge finally speaks up. José cannot help but wonder how often he is on the sidelines of these kinds of discussions. The parrot decides to speak before the older duck has the chance.

“Donal’ is a very fierce duck. A true Caballero. From my experience, his concerns have always been valid. A chance to take a second look and evaluate before leaping.”

José says this all calmly, punctuating his last sentence by blowing a bubble.

“Sounds like you guys have been up to some dangerous stuff. Going on adventures without me Donald?”

The parrot pops his bubble, effectively getting eyes back on him. This was his fight. Donald should not have to deal with this. 

“Não, senhorita Della. Simply mundane college activities, like me trying to walk home alone at midnight after spending the afternoon in the library. Not a great plan, which was pointed out to me by Donal’. We found a safer alternative. And that time Panchito wanted to drink several cups of coffee followed by multiple energy drinks. He was quite lucky that Donal’ stopped him before he devolved into pure jitters.”

Panchito nods along. Della stands there, effectively silenced. José lets himself feel a sense of accomplishment. Even Scrooge looks a bit reflective. 

“Ah, desculpe meu irmão, I have embarrassed you, Donal’. Forgive me. Such good friends are a rare find.”

The parrot addresses his friend, a silent dismissal of his “argument” with Della. He feels content with the small victory and the smile he gets from Donald. Panchito then does what he does best and brings back a friendly mood.

“Hey! Since we’re on this side of campus, we can go visit the shop that’s is always open on Sundays. They have the best, and cheapest, donuts. Vamos!”

Panchito lifts Donald up and bolts away, screaming over his shoulder.

“Last one there es un huevo podrido!”

José looks to the two other ducks who are looking shocked.

“You heard the rooster. I have no doubt, two adventurers, such as yourselves, can race?”

He takes off without making sure the others have followed. Out of the corner of his eye, he spots Scrooge catapulting himself along the buildings. It seems that Donald was not wrong in saying his uncle would never resist a challenge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed reading! A little bit of a verbal fight, which is a different style than this story has really seen before. I’d like to thank you all for the kind comments and Kudos! I try to be as responsive as possible! I’m very happy to answer any questions or to simply chat! You can do so here or on my tumblr! That's where the art is from! Have a great day!!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:  
> Você já foi à Bahia, Donal’? Não?-Have you ever been to Bahia, Donal ’? No?  
> Quem vai ao "Bonfim", minho amigos, nunca mais quer voltar. Muita sorte teve, muita sorte tem, muita sorte terá. Você já foi à Bahia, amigo? Não? Então vá!-  
> Whoever goes to "Bonfim", my friends, never wants to go back. You were very lucky, very lucky you are, very lucky you will be. Have you ever been to Bahia, friend? No? So go!

Panchito arrives at the store fairly quickly. He was not sure what just happened between Della and José and is not sure he wants to.

“Panchito?”

His duck friend asks, a confused look on his face. Right. Bolting off while carrying other people is not typical behavior. Donald struggles a little bit. He gently puts Donald down.

“Sorry, hermano. The tension was getting to be a bit much. I’ve never seen José so… sharp? I don’t think Della likes us very much.”

Panchito looks at the ground, feeling a little guilty that he had made such a bad first impression. 

“It’s not your fault. I think there’s something up with her. You’ve been nothing but nice so far.”

The duck pats his wing and Panchito pulls him into a side hug.

“We were worried while you were gone. We know how dangerous adventures are and you seem to go on exponentially more when you go home.”

Panchito looks away, letting the duck go, realizing how clingy he is being. Probably more than is acceptable. 

“I should have called more than the two times. Especially given what we had just gone through right before the break. That’s on me. I’ll do better. And give you guys the phone number. Or, feel free to reach out through the amulet if I’m silent for a while. It is very easy to be swept away while around Uncle Scrooge and his adventures. But I can do better.”

The duck gives him a wide smile and tugs him over to the restaurant. Scrooge shows up soon followed by José and then Della. Panchito quickly orders and moves aside for the others to move forward. Not too long later he gets his donut, a fluffy, chocolatey circle of joy. He plops himself down on a nearby outside bench and is soon joined by Donald and José. The donut is gone far too soon. Panchito sighs. Della and Scrooge had joined the trio on the bench. José is sitting the farthest from the two ducks with Panchito the closest to them. Donald is between the rooster and parrot. José has finished his donut and is leaning back, humming a song that he had taught Panchito and Donald. All of it is in Portuguese, making it a little hard for the rooster to pick up the words, but he loves giving his friend the opportunity to revel in his mother tongue. He begins playing his guitar. José glances at him with a smile. 

“Você já foi à Bahia, Donal’? Não?”

José stands up, altering words of the song while holding his hands out to Donald and Panchito. Panchito stands while still playing, swinging around with the other two while they danced more freely. 

“Quem vai ao "Bonfim", minho amigos, nunca mais quer voltar. Muita sorte teve, muita sorte tem, muita sorte terá. Você já foi à Bahia, amigo? Não? Então vá!”

Panchito watches with a smile as the sharp-edges fall from the parrot. Hopefully, they could become friends with Della later when she felt better. But for now, Panchito will settle for getting his friends back to normal. 

\--------------------------------

Donald leans back in his chair, staring blankly at the board. It had been about a week since he had returned. He had attempted to reach out to his sister more than once, feeling that her attitude might be linked to the lessening contact that they shared. He ended up leaving a message with Duckworth, asking her to call him on the following Monday evening. He squints his eyes, mind-shifting to a different topic. The Three Caballeros had yet to follow through on searching for the third amulet. He should bring it up tonight when they met together to study. He twists his pencil in his hand. He would rather do it sooner so that they could face finals week without the thought of it lingering over the group.

José gives him a wave when he enters the room at the library. Panchito clucks in excitement.

“Hey, I just asked José if it would be okay to go for the third amulet today. Would it be okay with you?”

Donald looks at the two of them, suddenly nervous.

“Are you guys sure after last time? Panchito, you still get nightmares. And José, don’t pretend it hasn’t bothered you on some level. I don’t want to traumatize you guys further.”

José stands and places his hand on Donald’s shoulder.

“Donal’, as bad as the adventures have gotten, I have enjoyed them. They have been, by far some of the most exciting things I have ever done. And I get to do them with the best friends a bird could ask for? Truly an honor.”

Panchito lifts the two of them into a hug. 

“I get scared at some of what we face, but we face it together. It’s nice to accomplish something so special and unique for just our group. When we are knocked down we get back up!”

He lets out a crow. Donald looks at the smiling faces of his friends and relaxes.

“I just wanted to make sure that you guys did not feel forced. It’s okay to say no, if you don’t feel up to it. But if we are are all in agreement, let’s do this!”

The trio separate and move to the Founders Chamber. They begin by analyzing the image of the greenfinch. Virdis Finchel is standing in front of a small cottage-like building that Donald recognizes. 

“That’s a common place for people to go to study. It has some really interesting stain glass.”

José carefully examines the tablet. 

“Seems like Finchel was into the arts. Always concerned with a dramatic entrance and performing.”

“Sounds like this is going to be interesting.”

The rooster states. The group agrees to meet up in half an hour at the cottage. Donald goes back to his dorm, grabbing his new flashlight and grabbing a mostly empty bag he had. He arrives at the cottage and slowly enters it. The inside is dark, the lights having been shut off for the night. He shines his light around, the stain glass windows shimmering with a plethora of colors. The room is square with pillowed seats lining the walls. He jumps a little as his two friends enter. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now we start on the final founder’s chambers!! I'm very excited to show off these final challenges! Poor Donald, worrying over his friends and his sister… Hopefully, things will go well this time around with the founder's challenges.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:
> 
> Hermanito-little brother  
> Irmão-brother  
> hermanos-brothers

José glances around the small room, picking out different details to analyze. He is drawn to the windows, which, even with only moonlight, are beautiful. The mixture of bright colors reminds him of his home. Something bothers him about them. Throughout each window are five horizontal lines, but occasionally they would be interrupted by a green patch of glass. The parrot narrows his eyes in thought. 

“Does anyone have paper?”

“I might.”

Donald responds digging through his bag and pulling out a scrap sheet with a pencil. José thanks him and begins by drawing the five lines. He then drew circles on each line and relooks at the windows. Some are a lighter shade. He leaves the corresponding circle’s unshaded. Panchito looks over his shoulder. 

“Looks like sheet music. Can you play it?”

“I think so. There is some vital information missing, but I’m pretty sure that this is supposed to represent the “Fur Elise” by Beethoven.”

“Go for it!”

Donald says and the two other birds step back. José breathes deeply and begins to play his umbrella, the notes floating around the small room. The floor slowly begins opening in the middle. He continues to play until he reaches the last note that had been set into the stained glass. The floor has mostly fallen away, with a square spiraling staircase taking its place. The trio begins the walk downwards, relying on Donald’s flashlight as they move further from the light of the moon. The air is cold and stale, growing in both qualities as they travel deeper underground. When they reach the bottom of the stairs they are greeted with a large arch. 

“Through here trials to prove the worth of a champion. To gain the amulet of Finchel they must beat them all.”

Panchito reads aloud and suddenly torches flare to life before them. Except these torches are strange. Rather than true fire, a kind of false flame exude flickering light. Donald shifts his own flashlight, presumably to save power. The trio carefully steps through. The hall they enter has shaped stones forming the ground. Donald stops the other two.

“I’ve seen stuff like this before. The ground will likely fall out if we step on the wrong part of the floor or something. We’ve got to find something to clue us in to the pattern.”

They all look around. The only clue that seems to be present is the carved words on the other end of the hall. Wondering if verbally reading them aloud will cause another flare of magic like the first set of words, José speaks.

“Playing beat, touch one’s feet. Silence drop, forced to stop.”

He can feel the activation of the magic in the chamber and music begins to play, with very audible beats. Silently he listens to the song and then lets himself fall into it, stepping and swaying with the beat. 

“Donal’. Panchito. We must dance. Step with the rhythm”

Donald pales. He left-hand shakes slightly.

“I’m too clumsy for that! I’m going to trip up for sure!”

Fear is so clear on the duck’s face. Panchito holds out his hand. 

“Oh hermanito, we’ll never let you fall to your doom. We’ll pick you up after every time you trip.”

José also holds out his hand.

“Irmão, we’re in this together. Not just in these trials, but in life. You may stumble but we’re here to help you back up!”

\------------------------------------

Panchito watches as Donald grasps both of their outstretched wings. Panchito holds his remaining wing out to José. The parrot grabs it and they begin to step and sway on the edge of the room. Panchito lets his eyes slip closed and he falls into the beat. They move, feet falling with each beat, twisting with each other and holding tight. Donald slips up once but the rooster and parrot hold him securely and he does not fall. They continue to wind around the room. Soon the room is forgotten, nothing is left but the music, the beat and each other. Panchito steps backward, sidestep, twist, in sync with the other two. The music begins speeding up and they match it. The tune is simple enough and Panchito finds himself humming it as they keep moving. They become so lost that the danger is forgotten and they stop doing simple steps, falling into more complex patterns twirling each other around. Yet, the parrot and rooster always make sure at least one of them has a firm grip on Donald. 

Then the music stops and they are on the other side. Panchito blinks at the long hall they had just traversed. His feathers tingle slightly. He looks down at his two friends who also look somewhat mesmerized at the path. 

"Are you two okay, hermanos?"

He asks.

"Sim. Just a little winded."

Donald nods in agreement. They all stand there for a minute, taking deep breaths. Panchito is the first to turn towards the next room. His friends come to stand beside him. As one they move forward, down a flickering hall. Before long they arrive at a large room that has two sections of raised floors against opposite walls. On the third wall directly opposite them is a statue shaped like a four-point star. Around the top point is the amulet. Above this, Panchito can just make out the words 'Impress me'. 

As they step into the room, all of the light leaves the torches, and Donald's flashlight, coalescing into a large fox with equally large peacock feathers sprouting from its back. It shines brightly, and the rooster finds it hard to look directly at it. He readies his lasso as Donald slips into a fighting stance. The creature moves towards and shrieks. He is tossed back, slamming into the wall. He rises quickly and finds that he is stuck behind a wall made of light. José is to his right, separated by a light wall. Donald is alone on one of the elevated portions of the floor while the large fox sits on the one opposite of him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought it would be pretty fun to have a dance section. I was thinking the tune for the area is probably something upbeat with a lot of drums, but it really could be anything that you want! Also soft moments with my bois give me life!  
> The image is from my Tumblr.   
> hermesserpent-stuff


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter translations there is quiet a bit here: 
> 
> Eu vou morrer aqui-I will die here  
> Warning for a very loose interpretation of song lyrics gotten from https://lyricstranslate.com:
> 
> Chorando se foi quem um dia só me fez chorar. Chorando se foi quem um dia só me fez chorar. Chorando estará ao lembrar de um amor, que um dia não soube cuidar. Chorando estará ao lembrar de um amor, que um dia não soube cuidar-   
> In tears left the one who only made me cry. In tears left the one who only made me cry. And he will cry recalling this love, that he didn’t know how to care for. And he will cry recalling this love, that he didn’t know how to care for.
> 
> A recordacao vai estar com ele aonde for. A recordacao vai estar pra sempre aonde for. Danca sol e mar guardarei no olhar. O amor faz perder encontrar. Lambando estarei ao lembrar que este amor, por um dia um instante foi rei.-   
> And this memory will never leave him. And this memory will always be with me. Dance, sun and sea, I will never forget that love makes one lose and find.I’ll be dancing the lambada, to recall the love which one day for a while ruled our hearts.  
> A recordacao vai estar com ele aonde for. A recordacao vai estar pra sempre aonde for. Chorando estara ao lembrar de um amor, que um dia nao soube cuidar. Cancao riso e dor melodia de amor, um momento que fica no ar.-   
> And this memory will never leave him.  
> And this memory will always be with me. And he will cry recalling this love, that he didn’t know how to care for. Song about laughter and pain, love melody of a moment blown by the wind.

Donald charges at the beast, angry at how his friends had been tossed to the side. He howls in rage. He ducks beneath its paw and delivers a kick to its face. It quickly recovers and snaps its jaws at him. He twists out of the way, feeling a fang graze his back. He slides across the floor. The duck jumps back. He hears Panchito and José yelling encouragement. Bending, he avoids claws, but is not fast enough to dodge the sweeping tail that slams him into a wall. He rises back onto webbed feet, blood dripping from his nostrils, down across his bill. He screeches, losing himself in the pain and anger. Through the air he flies, wrapping around the fox, kicking and punching from any angle that he can. He is bucked off, slamming up into the ceiling, and sent careening into the floor. Donald rises, legs trembling, and surges forwards again. 

He had to beat this thing. Another hard nock to his head blurs his vision and he is left clutching his head. The fox steps and twirls letting out a mocking cry as it dances in its spot. Slowly Donald stands, stumbling. He can vaguely hear his friends, once more reminded why he cannot stop. Spitting, Donald screeches at the fox and dashes around, leaping over it and delivering a kick to its head. He is caught by a paw and collides with the familiar floor. The room darkens and he fades out. 

When he comes too he is behind a barrier of light, next to José’s own barrier. The parrot is leaning against the clear wall, looking back and forth between Donald and something beyond. The duck shifts his wavering gaze and can see Panchito getting beaten down by the fox. He hears José yell.

“Donal’! You’re awake. You’re not dead!”

He can hear the tears in the parrot’s voice. Donald works through the fog of his pain, clutching at his battered ribs. A thought comes to mind.

“I don’t……. Beat it. We can’t. Not with fists.”

He gasps out and curls in on himself. Donald can see horror painted across José’s beak. They both wince as they hear a particularly loud smack from beyond the barrier. The parrot turns and screams to the rooster. Donald shakily breathes, brains swimming again. He catches sight of Panchito swiping the blood of his lower beak and sling his lasso. With his rage beaten out of him, Donald is able to rethink about the trial. But the muddling caused by pain makes it hard to think. The overbearing fear that is starting to infect his heart does not help matters. He lets out a mumbly groan which causes the parrot to turn back to him. With his slightly cleared vision, Donald can see the heavy tears that are falling. A loud smash and then subsequent dragging noises signal the defeat of the rooster. The large fox drags him to beside Donald and suddenly José is set free. The parrot is pale.

“I can’t fight like you guys! I’m so useless! Eu vou morrer aqui.”

The fox moves back to sit on the raised part of the floor. Donald makes a noise to get the parrot to look back at him. He gives the best smile he can.

“Impress… me… the clue. Pre-preform bro-other. I trust you.”

Donald breathes, fully believing in the abilities of the parrot. 

\----------------------------------------

José feels the confidence that Donald has in him. He stiffens his back and turns to face the fox. Fists did not work. Not that he was great with those. His weapon of choice is words. Insulting the fox probably would not work. He reflects back on what he knows about the founder. A lover of the arts. Calling on his magic, José settles on a plan. He moves to the raised floor opposite of the fox and takes a deep breath. Holding his umbrella tightly, he stares down this beast that has beaten his brothers. He then strums his umbrella and begins to bounce around. He lets his magic slip out, amplifying his music, looping different noises. He taps his head to get a beat, scratches the ground to get a fill-in another part of the song. The whole time the fox watches, unmoving. He can hear clapping to the beat, and a quick glance reveals that it is Donald leaning up against the barrier clapping his hands. 

José keeps adding new noises and begins to dance, twirling his umbrella. He throws it and catches it. He then looks to Donald. 

“Donal’, can you play your hat?”

He reaches out with his magic as the duck complies and the thing begins to operate like an accordion.

“What song are we doing?”

“Lambada by Kaoma.”

The duck nods and starts playing the song they had practiced before. The music continues to build. The fox has begun to move dancing to the beat and José opens his beak, swinging himself round.

“Chorando se foi quem um dia só me fez chorar. Chorando se foi quem um dia só me fez chorar. Chorando estará ao lembrar de um amor, que um dia não soube cuidar. Chorando estará ao lembrar de um amor, que um dia não soube cuidar.”

He moves in front of the fox and bows slightly and offers his wing. The beast bends its head and they begin to dance in beat with each other, stepping and twisting. 

“A recordacao vai estar com ele aonde for. A recordacao vai estar pra sempre aonde for. Danca sol e mar guardarei no olhar. O amor faz perder encontrar. Lambando estarei ao lembrar que este amor, por um dia um instante foi rei.”

The fox bends its head, tucking it into José’s arms. The parrot continues to step. He twists and twirls around and under its neck, giving a friendly scratch. The fox croons and he falls back into step, becoming more affectionate. He pets its face and then spins away. A gentle scratch behind the ear, a soft boop on the nose, and a delicate pat on the side of the head. He whirls around dancing and singing. 

“A recordacao vai estar com ele aonde for. A recordacao vai estar pra sempre aonde for. Chorando estara ao lembrar de um amor, que um dia nao soube cuidar. Cancao riso e dor melodia de amor, um momento que fica no ar.”

The fox lays down as the song finishes and dissolves back into the light. The barriers fall. José rushes to Panchito and Donald, immediately working on their injuries and checking for concussions. Panchito is conscious and moving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My bois have defeated another of the founders’ monsters!! Lambada by Kaoma is honestly a fantastic song. There is some English versions, but the original is just lovely. I really wanted to give my parrot boy a chance to take the stage! Thank you so much for reading! For those that may be wondering, yes I do hope to continue this story into the Caballeros next semester of college beyond just uncovering this part of the founders’ secrets. I have 11% of a plan!


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tía - aunt   
> Pato- duck

Panchito had seen the end of José’s performance and is very impressed by his friend. He babbles praise as the panicked parrot is checking him over. José turns slightly red from the praise but continues to worry over the two. The rooster feels the injuries distinctly but also feels a slowly growing desire to simply roll in the dry dirt of the chamber surrounding them. Donald is now leaning against the wall beside him, his white feathers stained red. Panchito speaks up.

“José, you should get the amulet. You won where we couldn’t. Plus we need to get out of here. Donald needs some better cleaning and bandages.”

“Or a pond.”

The rooster ignores the strange mumble as the duck sighs against the wall. José nods and moves over to the star. He lifts the golden amulet with a green jewel and puts it on. A bright green light fills the chamber. Panchito closes his eyes, the light being too much for him to stand. He blinks and sees his friend staring at his ungloved right hand, where the feathers have taken a slightly different shade of green. The ground around the star begins to rise. Panchito snatches up Donald and joins José on the moving ground. They arrive in the park and the star statue falls open. Gold falls out. Panchito doubles over in pain, brought on by carrying his friend and the movement up word. He falls to the ground and loses his last bits of resistance. The rooster begins rolling over the dirt, ignoring the screaming of his ribs. He can feel the stares of his friends. Panchito can also feel his feathers tingling and the dirt that covers his feathers is growing warm. He hums as the pain fades away. He stands and shakes the loose dirt, feeling far better. There were still some aches but the biggest injuries seem to have become somewhat better.

“Cheating…”

Donald mumbles before losing his balance and falling against a tree. Panchito rushes over to his duck friend with José not far behind. Donald blinks at them. 

“Guys. Grab the gold.”

“We are little preoccupied with worrying about you Donal’.”

José states.

“We can leave and worry about me when you wrap up that last bit of adventure.”

Panchito looks to José who nods. Having somehow magically healed a bit, Panchito feels well enough for the excessive movement required to shift the pile of gold from the ground and into his bag. José helps him, trying to keep an eye on their friend in the process. When they have gotten the gold, both birds are distracted by the statue suddenly sinking down into the ground. Panchito looks back to the tree and finds Donald gone.

“José! Donal’ is gone!!” 

\------------------------------------------------

The duck in question is crawling into the nearby pond. He lays silently in shallow water, letting the gentle lapping movements of the liquid soothe his wounds. He probably should not have left his friends but the call of the water had been too strong. Something which he should probably be more worried about. He hums contently as he lays there. Donald can hear his friends calling out his name. He kicks his leg to make a splash but makes no move to get up. He hears Panchito growing closer. The duck sighs as he is lifted from the water by the rooster. A lot of the pain is gone, but exhaustion has taken its place. 

“Donal’?”

José asks, placing a hand on his shoulder. The duck breaths and curls a little tighter into himself.

“Sorry for leaving. I-I just felt, called? To the water.”

“It seems to have gotten rid of the worst of the cuts.”

The parrot responds and then yawns. Panchito lifts him into his other arm. Donald laughs tiredly as the two smaller birds are carried by the rooster back to Panchito’s dorm. Donald feels a soft twinge in the back of his mind and knows that going to the pond had not been enough to fully satisfy the call. On some level, he knows that he will have to go to the ocean. Not now. For now, he enjoys the company of his friends as they all settle down after one of the most exhausting adventures that they had been on.

The next morning they are awoken by Panchito waking crow. José tests out his new amulet. Donald watches with interest as a smaller version of the peacock fox is formed from the early morning light. The duck draws water from the air and floorboards, creating his small dragon. Panchito uses the dirt from his desk to form his mountain lion. The tiny creatures tussle and play, clambering over the trio of friends as the three birds sit on the floor. 

“We should name them!”

Panchito excitedly clucks while his tiny lion leaps from his knee to tackle the dragon. Donald nods along with José. The rooster begins to vibrate, excitement pouring out of him. He picks up his lion.

“Sierra! My favorite tía had an old cat named that.”

“That’s a nice name ‘Chito. I think that I’m going to call this little guy Tempest! What about you Zé?”

The nicknames fall from his bill easily and his friends smile encouragingly at him. The newly named dragon curls around his forearm

“I think this fox should be Aurora. What do you think, Pato?”

Donald nods. 

“A lovely name.”

They watch as the small creatures interact, a calm washing over them that is directly opposite of the mood the night before. Donald sighs contently, wrapping his arms around his knees. He is tugged into a side hug by Panchito who ruffles his head feathers. The rooster has tugged José into his other side.

“I’m glad to have done these adventures with you guys. I think they are definitely the best adventures I have ever been on.”

“I had glad too, Pato.”

Panchito says, a wild grin present on his beak. José nods.

“I could think of no better birds or Caballeros to have done it with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually looked up common cat names for Mexico. The website said Sierra means mountain? I thought it was cute. Also, a common Brazilian cat name was aurora which is daybreak. And then there’s Tempest because, low key, I love that name and it’s often associated with the ocean. So! Now all their small companions have names, I hope you guys like them. I did a little to much research time on it to be super honest. Also! Side effects of the amulets are starting to become a thing. Just to make a little spice.


	17. Chapter 17

José sits with a book open in his lap, relaxing in the warm sunlight of the park. Aurora sits on top of his hat. In front of him Donald is standing in the shallows of the pond, Tempest swimming in loops around his legs, occasionally leaping up to arch over the duck’s outstretched arm. The parrot contently stretches, the sunlight having become far more relaxing since he had gotten the amulet. When talking to the others, all three of them had found that each bird had a stronger longing to be around the element that their amulet controlled. The biggest side effect that José had noticed was a stronger desire to be outside or by windows. He figures it is the hardest on Donald, who cannot simply walk outside and be around the water. 

Panchito jogs over with a broad smile, Sierra right on his heels. The rooster had taken to running around the pond with the tiny mountain lion. José watches as the rooster allows the lion to tackle him to the ground and begins to wrestle. Reaching up, José pats Aurora. It is about a week before finals and the three of them were trying to relax before hitting the study books hard. Donald walks over to him, Tempest curled over his left forearm. Before the duck can reach him, Panchito tackles Donald. José laughs as the duck falls down into the dirt. The two other birds begin to tussle, kicking up a cloud of dirt paired with loud shouts and laughs. The lion and dragon are close by, also playfighting. Donald lets out a loud quack while struggling out of a hold. 

José glances back down at the page he had been reading and attempts to pick back up where he had left off. He is interrupted by a sudden pull on his leg. The parrot kicks Panchito’s hand away and drags his foot back to himself. The rooster is dragged back into the tussle by a snickering Donald. Panchito twists and tosses Donald into the air. The parrot watches as the duck screeches as he is caught and shifted to Panchito’s shoulders. Donald lets out a gasping startled bout of laughter, hunching over in his new position. José stands and starts backing away as Panchito turns to him, having neutralized Donald. The parrot lets out a squawk and bolts as the rooster rushes towards him. Donald is yelling from his spot on Panchito’s shoulders.

“Get him ‘Chito!!” 

José twists away from snatching hands, twirling around a tree with a sing-song voice.

“~You’ll never take me alive~!”

He laughs, skipping just out of reach. Internally, José knows that Panchito can outlast him in stamina and determination. But he enjoys the game and the sheer playfulness and joy that is currently present. They, as a trio, had been through a lot of stress together, and having carefree time is kind of nice. José grows out of breath and is yanked into the air and spun around. He lets out a loud chuckle as Donald shrieks as the duck is almost flung from his perch. 

“You win Panchito! You win!”

José shouts. 

“Stop spinning!!!”

Donald pleads. Panchito chuckles and stops spinning. He gently puts down both of his friends, the trio beaming.

\------------------------------

Panchito stares into the distance, tapping his foot in thought. His brain is far gone from the notes that lie on the table before him. José lets out a questioning noise that pulls the rooster back to the present. He puffs out a sigh. Donald looks up and now Panchito has the attention of the trio. 

“I was just thinking, what are your plans for living next year? Do you guys want to try to room together next fall? I know its a little early…”

José’s eyes light up.

“I was just looking into that! I was thinking about some places near the campus where we could go. I think it would be fun to be roommates!”

Donald hums in agreement.

“If we can find a place cheap enough, I would totally be down for it.”

Panchito grins and barely holds in a crow. He had already gotten the librarian’s negative attention once today. He settles for kicking his legs and twitching in his seat. José pulls out a folder from his bag and begins to show off the different places he had found. Panchito looks the options over, humming with interest. Most would not open up for final decisions until January. The group discusses it and narrow the locations down to just a few. Panchito feels a bit of excitement at the plan. After this discussion, the group goes back to studying, finals almost upon them. 

Finally, the rooster cannot take it anymore. He sweeps up all of his notes and tucks them carefully away in his bag. Donald seems to take notice and cleans up his own space. José is not too far behind. Panchito tugs José into a piggyback ride as the parrot continues to read a book. He had started picking up his friends more often, used to that kind of interaction at home. He had always been lifted by his brothers and sisters and had lifted them in return. It made him feel close to them and made him feel near to his friends. Donald waddles beside him as they exit the library, carrying Panchito’s bag along with his own.

“Wanna grab some donuts?”

Donald quacks, getting a positive hum from José. Panchito nods and bounces down the hall. They get a few odd stares but Panchito easily ignores them. When they arrive at the donut shop, Panchito sets José down and the three order. They chatter as they wait for their food. It is somewhat mindless but friendly and comforting. Not important, yet jovial none the less. Panchito enjoys it while he can, slightly disheartened as he remembers that they are going to separate for winter break. Yes, he misses his own family, and cannot wait to see them once more. But, he also holds his new brothers close to his heart and knows that they are going to be very much missed. He is startled out of his darkening thoughts as Donald draws him into a side hug. The duck had become more confident with familial affection over the time that Panchito had known him and the rooster is thankful for the friendliness. He gives the duck a smile and reciprocates the hug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a bit of downtime for my bois. They deserve it!! And some time with, familiars? I don’t really know how to refer to Tempest, Sierra, and Aurora… Maybe companion is a good description.


	18. Chapter 18

Donald collapses against a tree, having just finished a final exam. José looks up from his own notes and gives the duck a sympathetic smile. 

“Meus amigo, are you okay?”

“Rough test.”

Donald lays on his stomach and draws water from the ground, forming Tempest and lets the small dragon crawl over him. José pats his back. Donald mumbles obscenities to the ground, worry over his answers coming to haunt him. He hears a loud crow and he is tossed into the air.

“Mi amigo! I know you just came out of a examen! This is cause for joy!”

Donald cracks a smile at his energetic friend. José calls out to the rooster.

“Put him down Panchito! He just got out of a stressful situation!”

Donald watches as the rooster rolls his eyes and shifts Donald so that he can lift José with one arm. The parrot lets out an indignant squawk. 

“I’m studying. Stop it!”

Donald begins to flail his legs while José violently waves his arms. This all causes Panchito to fall over. Tempest loops around his kneck, hiding away from the tangle of limbs that the three birds have become. Donald crawls away and starts dusting himself off. Panchito pops back up with a fierce shake to get rid of dirt. The duck reaches out and helps José rise back to his feet. The parrot straightens his shirt and begins to pick up his notes. Panchito hurries to help him, a few apologies falling from him, as he smiles entirely unapologetically. Donald lets out a snort at the sight of the small parrot berating the taller rooster while hitting him with his umbrella. Panchito is laughing and the smile gracing José’s beak shows that the anger is mostly for show. The trio settles down, all gathering beneath the tree. José seems to remember something and begins to speak. 

“I found out a way to hide my amulet. I can probably do it with your two!”

José pulls out his green amulet and taps it twice and it disappears. He taps his chest twice and the amulet is once again visible. Donald’s eyes widen with excitement. He had been pretty worried about how he was going to hide the new accessory when he went home. He had gotten lucky that no one noticed during the amulet during the last break. Or is it unlucky that his family had taken no notice of the chain around his kneck or any of his other changes? Donald shoves the thought away and pulls out his amulet. Panchito also pulls out his magical item. 

Suddenly a wind begins to swirl around them, light flooding out of each amulet. Donald realizes they had never had all three exposed at once and feels fear beginning to build. He can feel hate and rage palpably filling the air. Tempest dissolves back into water. The trio fight against the growing whirlwind, trying to remain standing. Donald hisses as the strong feelings invade his system. This rage and hate is all-consuming and is not his. 

\---------------------------------------------------------

José grits his teeth against the onslaught, pushing away the burning hatred for the other wielders of the amulets. He clings to the reality that these are his friends. It seems that the hatred held by the founders for each other had left echos in the individual amulets. José cracks his eye against the piercing wind and watches as the light from the three amulets bends together. Water begins to swirl out of the nearby pond. Dirt begins to rise from the ground. Sunlight begins to harden. The three different types of magic begin to slam into each other over the heads of the Three Caballeros. José looks to his friends and sees Donald clutching at his head while Panchito seems to be stuck in a silent scream. Their amulets shake and float in front of them. José is suddenly knocked back by a wave of water and some of the loathing slips past his defense. He swallows down a breath and lifts his umbrella to block the next crashing wave. 

The parrot watches fearfully as Panchito is slammed by a wall of light. The rooster rises into a kneeling position, seeming to have been broken out of his scream. José searches his mind for a solution for this violent clash of past animosity. He dodges a flying piece of ground and feels worry fill his stomach as the dirt begins to form into the mountain lion that they had fought beneath the ground. The sound of water smacking against a tree causes the parrot to notice the water transforming into the large eastern style dragon that they had fought. The large creatures leap at each other sending out a spray of mud. José finds himself knocked back once more. The horror in his stomach only grows as the giant peacock fox formed of light dives into the fray. 

José shoves down the anger and rushes over to Donald, pulling the duck out of the way of a slashing claw of the fox. The duck appears overwhelmed and José is sure that the other can feel the rage infecting them all most distinctly. Panchito struggles to move over to stand beside them. They move as one to dodge the three different attacks that are being aimed at them while also twisting around the three huge fighting monsters. Donald clutches at José’s arm as the trio hides behind a tree. The parrot spots tears forming in the duck’s eyes. Panchito keeps an eye out for any attacks.

“I hate you. Both of you. I promised I would never hate you two, but its all I can feel.”

Donald whispers out, hands clenched and left-hand trembling. José sees Panchito glance over and can see his own broken feelings reflected. This look is one of empathy and shared pain. José remembers that promise from when the adventures had begun and Donald seems to think that these emotions are his fault. The parrot puts a gentle hand over the wing that is clutching his arm. 

“Donal’. These emotions aren’t you. The fact that you are crying and not beating us both to a pulp is enough evidence to me that you do not hate us. I’ve seen it when you get truly mad at something. Breath, there is nothing to be sorry for.”

The duck trembles. Panchito grabs the two of them, moving them out of the way of a wave of water. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof, things have picked up once again. That hatred was left to fester for a very long time, so its a bit strong. Like if you left cheese in a basement for like a hundred years, given my timeline in my head of the university being established around 1850’s ish and my bois going to school in like 1999 ish. Maybe not exactly like cheese… Analogies aside, thank you so much for reading. It is very fun to write this content. If you see an idea here you’d like to take and use your own spin, that’s totally cool! Id love to be told, only because I just love reading about my soft bois. Go wild! The art is from my tumblr!


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ay caramba- Oh No  
> Algunas ideas- Any ideas

Panchito spits out some of the water that had been smashed into his face. He yanks José away from a splatter of stones. He scans the area and pulls his two friends behind a large boulder. The rooster huffs, feeling the bubbling anger start to invade his thoughts. He feels a deep urge to start throwing punches. Irritation blisters through his veins. Panchito sucks in a breath. He draws on his memories of friendship to press down this invasive hatred. The rooster puffs out a breath, steadying himself. Donald is clenching his eyes shut, one hand tightly holding onto José. 

“We can’t dodge forever Zé.”

Panchito states while keeping an eye out for other projectiles coming their way. The parrot groans out a frustrated noise and Panchito knows that the foreign feelings are getting to them all.

“We could try the methods we used before?”

“Ay caramba. How could we even pull that off?”

José frowns and the trio dive out of the way as the mass of tangled large creatures comes crashing down where they had been standing. Suddenly Donald begins to yell, so violently that Panchito has a hard time understanding what he is saying. The duck jumps around, face turning bright red. Before either Panchito or José can react the duck is charging at the three beasts.

“Come here ya big palookas!!” 

Panchito makes out from Donald’s screams as the duck begins to whirl around the three large monsters.

“José? Algunas ideas?”

Panchito hopefully asks the parrot while tracking the movement of Donald. The parrot growls and clutches at his head. Panchito winces.

“This rage is making thinking very hard. Very very hard.”

For the first time since Panchito had come to know the parrot, the bird snarls. José kicks at the ground while still holding onto his head, frustration leaking out into his jerky motions. Panchito fights back the sudden desire to violently shake his friend and demand a solution. He does, however, drag José away from a wave of light spears that come flying at the two of them. The rooster turns just in time to spot Donald get tossed from the back of the mountain lion. The duck slides to a stop right beside the rest of the trio. The duck seems to be more focused than he had been before flying off into a rage. Donald looks to them.

“This rage is not ours. Replace it.”

“What does that even mean?!”

Panchito snaps, growling at his friend. The rooster stops himself short, not liking the anger that is aiming itself at his friends. Donald, who is still flush with anger shoots him a wonky grin. 

“I hate this feeling. I hate this fight. I hate the danger that you two are in. But I treasure and love my brothers. You two. This foreign anger and hatred? I’m writing over it with stronger emotions.” 

José gasps. Panchito watches as the parrot’s eye alight with a new fire, replacing the hopelessness and anger. José grabs his arm and attaches himself to Donald. The rooster can practically hear the gears churning in the smaller’s mind. 

\---------------------------------

Donald blinks at the arm holding onto him and hopes that this means that his green friend has come up with a strategy. The duck had dived into the fight, knowing that using his fists is one of the few ways he can force unwanted emotions out. 

“We need to show that our bond of brotherhood is stronger than their bond of malice.”

The duck glances over to Panchito to see if the rooster understands what the parrot is getting at. The rooster crosses his arms and holds them out. José follows suit and Donald joins them forming the familiar handshake once more. 

“Squawk!”

“Crow!”

“Quack!”

“I got your back!”

Everything seems to freeze. Then the light begins to return to the three amulets looping around the trio in a circle. Donald focuses on the good memories that he has with his friends. His feathers in his hands tingle and light up blue. Panchito’s and José’s hands glow the respective colors of their gems. The ground being them begins to rise. Water swirls in a tornado around them, with them dry in the center. Light floods over them, warming feathers. He feels like he is being tugged backward and tightens his hold. He feels his brothers also grip tighter. Donald clenches his eyes closed against the brightening light. Something is building, yet at the same time, the pure hatred from before is trying to tear it apart. He takes a deep breath and steps forwards. His actions are mirrored by the other two. They stand close together, letting the power build up in and around them. Donald begins to quietly hum the first song they had created together, eyes and hands still clenched. Panchito and José pick it up, voices clear and strong. Donald joins them, singing his heart out. He feels the energy that is between them as it blossoms and pushes outwards. They begin singing a new verse, one that they had not added to the original song but becomes clear to the trio as they stand linked, baring their souls through their voices.

“Like brother to brother! We’re all for each other! The Three Caballerooooooos!”

The trio holds onto the last note, forcing it to last as long as they have air. When it finally ends Donald can hear Panchito dragging in a large breath. The rooster lets loose one of the strongest gritos that Donald has ever heard from the bird. The duck sucks in oxygen and releases his own cry into the air. José throws his voice in and lets loose a screechy croon. The three stand united, opening their eyes as one. They are floating, dirt, light, and water circling around an invisible bubble. The rage finally breaks as they share a smile. Slowly their hands stop glowing and they gently come back down to earth. The water, dirt, and light all return to their original states. There is no sign of the three large monsters. In the small space between the trio, three keys appear, floating silently. Donald shudders and collapses forwards into his friends. They end up in a heap on the ground all breathing heavily and enjoying being alive and free of the malice that had filled their brains. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun tidbit, that last line of song is from the ending of the 1944 movie for the three Callaberos. I made Donald have a little more control than usual when he gets mad because the anger is from an outside source, rather than his normal inside source? I dunno if that makes sense. I thought it’d be cool to give them one last battle for this arch of the story. Honestly looking back, this is very dnd-esque with the chambers being different dungeons with final bosses at the end. OoPs! 
> 
> Also, quick side note, the University is called Flighton University .


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Concordou meu amigo- agreed my friend  
> Lucha- fight  
> maravilhoso - marvelous  
> mi polluelo- my chick

José is the first to stand and he grabs one of the keys and passed the other two over to his brothers. Donald and Panchito tuck them away as they remain sitting on the ground. José plops back down beside them. Panchito lets out a broken laugh which slowly turns into full cackles.

“Let’s hold off on adventures till next semester mis amigos.”

Panchito says his anxiety-filled laughter dying down. José shoots him a wide grin.

“Concordou meu amigo!”

The parrot readily agrees, falling onto his back. The three layout on the dirt, relaxing and attempting to regain their breath. Donald speaks up first.

“So, not to be annoying, but José could you use your magic like you were talking about before things went nuts?”

The parrot laughs and rises back up. The other two sit up. Donald holds out his amulet. José wraps his magic around it, forcing light to be bent around the amulet, so none reflected off of it. Donald smiles as the amulet vanishes. José drops his hand. Donald double taps his chest and the amulet reappears. José watches as the duck taps the amulet twice and it disappears. The parrot turns to the rooster who holds out his red amulet. He repeats the process and then lays back down. 

“Well. I’m exhausted.”

He stretches in the sunlight and murmurs to the wind. The parrot whines a small protest as he is lifted and moved to another location. He peeks around and notes that he is now laying next to the pond in a large patch of sunlight. Donald waddles up next to him and gently puts his bag down beside him.

“I think all your notes are still in here. It stayed out of the fight zone, apparently.”

“Thanks, Donal’.”

“Sure thing Zé.”

The duck proceeds to move over to the pond and lays down with his legs in the water. If José had wanted to he could stretch out his hand and tap Donald’s head. Panchito drops himself down near both of them, just within reach if he was needed. José recloses his eyes and relaxes. Sure he could be studying, but this break is much needed given all the stress they literally had just been through. He feels his feathers warming and a soft wind ruffles through them. 

Less than a week after the “Ultimate Lucha”, as Panchito had dubbed it, the trio are preparing to separate for winter break. José feels tears dripping out of his eyes. Panchito grabs the other two up into a tight hug as they waited at the bus stop for Donald’s bus. The duck is also teary-eyed. They all swear up and down that they are going to call each other every couple of days. The rooster clucks sadly as they get one final tight group hug. Donald pats them both on the back and then steps onto the bus as it rolls up. José waves as it pulls away. He can see the duck waving his hand through the window. The parrot sighs and turns to say a final goodbye to Panchito. They hug and separate one heading to the train station to head to Mexico and the other grabbing a taxi to the airport to catch a flight to Brazil. 

\----------------------------

Panchito snuggles into his mother’s arms as she gives him a back-breaking hug. He had missed his whole family while he had been away. The rooster enjoys all of the attention. His brothers and sisters have all gathered around, crowing and calling out in excitement at his arrival. It feels like he is a returning hero. They have a large meal and he gushes over his time at college, answering all the questions that are aimed at him that had not been answered in the letters that he had sent home. It is not till late that night that he finally catches his mother alone. 

“Mamá?”

“Si Panchito?”

The rooster sucks in a breath and taps his chest twice. He pulls out his amulet. He knows that his family is okay with magic, evidenced through their occasional use of a flying serape. Panchito breaths and pulls out the small bag of dirt he had taken to carrying around. His hands begin to glow red and the dirt shifts into Sierra. His mother lets out a croon and reaches for the tiny lion. Sierra looks to Panchito who nods and holds her out.

“This is not such a terrible secret chico. How did you get this amulet?”

His mother begins to pet the small cat. Panchito slowly unravels his tale, playing down the life-threatening parts. He emphasizes his friend’s heroics, detailing the different problems that he had solved with them through brains and not just fists. 

“I would love to meet your amigos Panchito. They sound like good people.”

“The best Mamá. I could try calling them if you’d like?”

“Long-distance is so expensive…”

Panchito watches his mom’s face shift into a sad frown. He grabs her wing and snatches up a bowl as he head outside. Sierra rests in her opposite hand. The young rooster scoops up some dirt into his bowl and concentrates on wanting to see his friends. The light from the open door of the house illuminates the contents of the bowl. His hands begin to glow red once more. Suddenly he can see José and Donald both in the bowl with an invisible divider between them. Behind the parrot is a crowd of faces. Donald is alone in a room the Panchito recognizes as his room. 

“Olá Panchito! And Donal’! This is my família!”

The parrot is grinning widely and there is a chorus of hellos. Panchito waves.

“This is my Mamá.”

Panchito says, grinning at his friends. His mother seems very surprised. 

“Hey, Panchito’s mom and José’s family. I’m Donald.”

The duck waves with a small smile. 

“I am José! An honor to meet you. You produced a maravilhoso son.”

Panchito’s mother clucks approvingly. 

“It is nice to see the amigos that Panchito speaks so highly of! Thank you, boys, for watching out for mi polluelo.”

“Mamá!”

Panchito lets out an offended noise. Donald laughs lightly while José sniggers. The rooster sticks his tongue out at the two and gets a hit on the back of the head for “being rude”. They speak for a while longer, with José introducing the family members that are around, including his own mother who happily greets them. As the hour drew late the three boys say their goodbyes and dissolve the image. Panchito’s mother tells him that he is allowed to use magic around the ranch, just to be careful about letting strangers catch a glimpse of it or Sierra. Panchito resolves to tell his adventures in college to his siblings the next day, knowing that they will get a kick out of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now we start meeting the families. I have little knowledge from the comics or official lore for either Panchito or José, so I’m making up characters for their family. I really hope they’re ok? I gave it the best I could! To be super clear, Panchito has two older brothers and older sister and a little sister and little brother. I also think his grandparents live with them, but they haven’t made an appearance. José has two older sisters and a younger sister. He is the only boy.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pequeno- little  
> Muito obrigado- Much thanks

Donald, earlier that day, had entered the mansion to find it empty of any other ducks. Duckworth greets him at the door and Donald tries not to let it get to him that his sister and uncle are gone. The butler helps him carry his bags to his room and then hovers at the door.

“Master Donald.”

The butler sounds almost hesitant, unusual for the man. The duck turns to him, with worry filling his stomach. 

“Yes? Is everything okay Duckworth?”

“I did not have the chance to discuss this with you last time you were home, as I was unable to catch you alone. Master Donald, I noticed that your hands have taken on a slight blue and the last time you were home you were wearing a silver chain. I do not want to accuse you of anything.”

Donald sighs and picks up his bowl. 

“Give me a second. I’ll explain myself when I get back.”

The butler nods and the duck quickly moves to the bathroom. He fills the bowl with water and walks back into the room. He places it onto his desk and then shuts the door. The two are now alone. 

“Duckworth. You know I would do nothing to hurt Uncle Scrooge or Della, right?”

The butler nods, eyes slowly narrowing. 

“I don’t want you to share what I’m about to tell you with them. If they ask about my hands or happen to notice anything else, I’ll come straight out and tell them. Those are my terms for telling you.”

Duckworth slowly crosses his arms, straightening his back. The butler nods. Donald sucks in a breath. He taps his chest and pulls his amulet out from beneath his shirt. The butler’s eyes widen.

“I went on a couple of adventures at school. I don’t want to say anything because I know that Della will get jealous. And I know that Uncle Scrooge really doesn’t approve of magic. This amulet is magical. I have been able to use magic since I got it. I had it checked for curses and there are none on it. The only side effects of wearing it have been the small shift in color of my hand feathers and being drawn a little more to the ocean. But I already felt that call long before I found this.”

The butler silently listens to him, not interrupting. Donald is thankful to be heard.

“I do not advise that you use this magic around your uncle.”

Donald can feel the butler forming a decision in his mind. The duck responds.

“I don’t plan on using it outside of my room while in the mansion. I promise not to “cheat” with it, as Uncle Scrooge would say, during adventures. Unless it is the absolute last resort. So, wanna see?”

He ends his serious talk with an inviting smile. Duckworth gestures for him to go on with his hands. Donald flexes his hands and dips one into the bowl. They begin to glow blue. He forms Tempest. Though the butler had flinched at the initial sight of the dragon, Duckworth ends up giving Tempest a few careful pats. 

\-----------------

José happily plays his umbrella as his family claps their hands. He had shown off his new amulet as soon as he had gotten home. He currently has Aurora perched on his shoulder. They finish the song and his siblings collapse into laughter and gasping breaths. José leans back against a wall, warmly smiling at his family as they are all gathered. They start up another tune, a smattering of instruments among the family. Drums, flutes, accordions, and guitars all swirl together. Many are not even true instruments, an assortment of objects that range from hats to canes. The music is interrupted by sudden cheers. 

“Papai!!”

José looks to the door of the small apartment where his family all lives together. Their father had just walked in, exhaustion dripping from his feathers after coming back from a long day at work. José knows how hard the man works to provide for them all. Their mother also carried a heavy load. José had worked hard and gotten a full-ride to his university, glad to remove that financial burden from his parents. He could remember the worst of times when he had taught himself pickpocketing and had learned how to perform in the streets for money. Things were much easier now and José hopes they remain that way. His siblings drag their father further into the room and begin dancing, singing, and playing music once more. José strums, swaying happily to the tune. 

Later that evening, when the family had started to settle in for the night, José’s father catches him by the arm. He holds up a small brown book that looks fairly worn.

“I asked around my friends early this morning right before work if they had anything that could help learn light manipulation.”

José instantly knows that his father is referring to a group of birds that had helped to teach him and his siblings magic for as long as he can remember. They were a group bonded through a shared secret and love of the arcane. He carefully takes the small book, stupefied at being trusted to look through it. Books such as these were rarely separated from their owners. 

“Two days, pequeno.”

“Muito obrigado.”

The parrot nods with a very serious expression. He quickly starts reading through the book which is in old Portuguese, with haphazard notes scratched in a variety of inks in the margins. He spends the whole night working on figuring out which parts apply to his new amulet and powers. José writes his own note in a code in a notebook that he had started when he had first started learning magic. The second night working his way through the book finds him in a window, sitting in the moonlight. He had found that he occasionally got a deep ache in his heart if he spent too much time away from either sunlight or moonlight. It’s a little odd, as his initial assumption had been that the sunlight would be the only thing he is drawn to. He hands the book back to his father as the bird leaves in the early hours of the morning with multiple thanks and a small note for the owner of the book. José feels far more confident in his control and ability to use his amulet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, a little background for José and a harrowing interaction with Duckworth. I honestly believe that the butler, before he died, was the one who noticed all the small things, cause its a little bit part of his job. We have some more family interactions coming up, so stay tuned for that! Thank you so much for reading!


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Veo que- I see that

Panchito revels in his return to the family, waking up early, doing work on the ranch, and eating and talking in massive groups. He loved eating the food that he had grown up with once more. The whole family is slowly getting ready for Christmas, which is a fairly large event in the Pistoles household. Currently, he is rounding up cattle with his oldest brother, Morales named for their grandfather. He had shown off his powers while telling of his adventures at college the day immediately after his mother had met his friends. Sierra rests on his shoulder as he rides on a grey mare. 

Something suddenly startles the herd, causing them to bolt. Panchito is thrown and the mare rushes away back to the stable. Morales tries to keep the cattle in line but one breaks free. Panchito begins running after it as he yells back to his brother.

“I’ve got this one! Get the others calm!” 

The steer is far faster than he is on foot, and the rooster realizes that he is starting to fall behind. He begins to swing his lasso above his head. The rooster throws it and misses it. Drat. He keeps his pace while pulling his rope back into his hands, falling further behind. Abruptly, Sierra leaps from his shoulder and begins to run beside him. The lion grows larger and larger, growing to a size that is big enough for Panchito to vault onto the cat. He rides while swinging his lasso above his head once more. Sierra races across the ground, quickly decreasing the distance between him and the steer. He throws his lasso once more. This time it hooks around its head. Sierra freezes, becoming solid and attacked to the earth below her. Panchito leans back, holding tightly to his rope. The steer struggles, still trying to bolt. It soon tires as it has been pulling against an immovable object. Panchito slowly draws it and Sierra begins to stalk back towards Morales. The older rooster stares openly at him. Panchito throws him a wink.

“I picked up some new skills in college.”

His brother lets out a hearty laugh. 

“Veo que! Very impressive.”

Panchito returns the steer to the rest of the herd. Then he pats Sierra on the head, clucking his appreciation. His brother laughs at this gushing and Panchito maturely responds by sticking out his tongue. After they finish moving the heard to a new pasture, Morales proposes a race. Panchito asks Sierra and gets a loud purr.

“Si. On tres brother?”

Morales nods and maneuvers his horse to stand beside Sierra and Panchito. The younger counts them off. 

“Uno. Dos. Tres!”

Panchito leans down and grabs onto the “fur”. He is at a distinct disadvantage, lacking both a saddle and reigns. But he trusts in his own ability to stay on, having ridden horses bareback many, many times. Wind slices through his feathers and he lets out a yell of excitement as Sierra leaps over a hole in the ground. The earthen lion is pulling far ahead of Morales’ galloping horse. Panchito waves with a broad smile. A small part of him wishes that the other Callaberos were here. He tries to soothe that feeling by making a silent promise to contact them that night.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------

Donald feels it in his bones that there will be a storm on the ocean today. He tries to convince Scrooge that they should stall their tenth adventure of the winter break for just a day to avoid the storm. This earns him a questioning look from Uncle Scrooge and an unkind laugh from Della.

“How do you know there’ll be ah storm laddie? T’ain’t nothin in the news for it.”

“I can feel it in my bones. There’s been a pressure shift. I recognize it after years of sailing.”

“O’ch, laddie, yer being a tad ridiculous.”

“He just doesn’t wanna be our driver. Probably too ~tired~!”

Della chimes in with a singing lilt to her last words. Donald grits his teeth and goes with them, giving a little more protest as he steers the small ship they had out to the sea. He hates that they do not even consider his words. The adventure goes well, all things considered. He had only managed to fall into one trap and knick both of his legs. On the way back, Della begins to rib him over the lack of a storm. He ignores his sister in favor of pushing down his growing desire to fling himself into the ocean. He had not been able to enter a body of water since resting in the pond after the “Ultimate Lucha” about two weeks back. Donald grips his wheel and keeps himself grounded. He can taste the storm on the edge of the horizon. His eyes stay forwards and his left-hand trembles. 

It hits them suddenly. Waves larger than the boat crashing over the bow of the ship. Lightning arcs across the sky, thunder crashing and shaking the air. Donald keeps the boat steady but feels fear pulse through his veins as he spots Della almost get swept away by a wave. 

“Get below deck!!”

The two other ducks act like they do not understand him. Something that they did when they thought he was being ridiculous. Rage boils in his stomach. A huge wave crashes over them, knocking the two other ducks to the ground. Donald almost croons as he is surrounded for a brief moment by the water. He then pushes down the feeling and rushes forward and scoops them both up and shoves them below deck. He jams the door and then moves to stand at the bow. He closes eyes and loses himself to the feeling of the waves.

“Tempest! I need your help!”

His hands glow and the small dragon forms around his right hand. Then the dragon begins to triple in size. Tempest dives into the water, taking a rope with him. Donald focuses on the ocean around him, bending away from the water. Tempest drags them to the dock safely. He safely ties up the ship and then frees his family. 

“Donald Fauntleroy Duck! What did you think you were doing, laddie?!”

“You can’t just do things like that Donny!”

Donald stares at his uncle, whos face is tinged red in anger. His sister is also red, hands balled into fists. He feels his adrenalin fall, and frustration begins to fill the pit of his stomach.

“What was I doing? Me?! I was the one who warned you two about the storm! But, noo, Scrooge and Della are far smarter than the duck who joined the navy. It was too dangerous for landlubbers like you to be wandering above deck. You almost were swept into the ocean! I saved you two.”

The storm is still raging all around them. A crash of thunder follows his words. Della growls and gets into his face. 

“I can handle myself just fine! You’re the clumsy one!”

Donald hisses at her refusing to back away.

“When you drive the ship you can make the rules. The ocean is my specialty. So, for once in your life actually listen to me.”

“That’s not fair of ye lad. Della and I listen. But it wasn’t any safer for us to be shoved inta the belly o’ the ship. What if it had filled with water and ye did not know?”

“I think, Unca Scrooge, I would notice a hole in my ship. I don’t know why you bother bringing me if my expertise is so quickly disregarded.”

Donald spits, fire filling him. 

“Yeah. I don’t know why we bring you along. You should just run back to your rooster and parrot. We don’t need you for adventures! You’re always finding ways to destroy the excitement.”

Donald feels like he has been slapped. He can feel tears beginning to burn at the corners of his eyes. He sucks in a breath and bends his head, letting them win the fight. Giving up like this is abnormal, but if the navy had taught him anything, sometimes a retreat is necessary for survival.

“Okay.”

He hears sputtering from the two ducks as he begins to walk down the dock. He walks, not towards the shore, but towards the end of the dock.

“I’ll see you later then.”

With these words, he dives into the ocean and begins to fiercely kick beneath the waves. It feels so good to be surrounded by his element and he distinctly feels the lack of a need to go up for air. He swims until he feels likes its enough distance and then pulls himself out into a small sea cave with pools of water. As the storm rages outside, he forms Tempest once more and calls his friends through the pool. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some good family moments with Panchito on his brother! Tensions are high in the duck family again!! Oh no! Della needs to stop being so mean!


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Los dos son demonios-They are both demons  
> Maninho-little brother

José blinks tiredly as his amulet hums. After pulling serval all-nighters to read other magic books his father had managed to bring him from around Rio, he had fallen asleep on the roof. Many of them contained information irrelevant to him but had been interesting subject material. He pulls the bowl that he had been eating out of before sleeping over to himself and flicks his lighter. He had found out how to transfer the light from the lighter’s flame to other places. He shifts it to sit in the empty bowl and watches as his friends’ faces appear. His heart drops at the sight of a tearful Donald alone in a cave, who looks to be fighting back the water spilling from his eyes. Panchito appears in the bowl beside him, a house in his background. 

“Sorry I’ve been out of touch lately. How are you guys?”

Donald’s voice violently shakes, and José knows the other is just pushing himself not to cry. Panchito wears a worried face that is mirrored by his own. 

“Hermanito, what has happened?”

“Oh, nothing. I-I-I...”

The parrot watches in horror as Donald breaks down while trying to respond to Panchito. He had only seen his friend this distraught once before. He aches to give his sobbing brother a hug.

“Donal’! What’s wrong? What has happened to you?”

José asks, concern clear in his voice. 

“Who do I need to beat up?”

The rooster follows up, deadly seriousness filling his voice. The duck hiccups as he tries to silence his tears. José makes a noise of soothing.

“Donal’, it’s okay. Let it out. We are here for you.”

Panchito nods along to the parrot’s words, still looking distinctly ready to throw down. Donald continues to cry for a while, getting words of comfort from the two other birds. Finally, he seems to be gathering himself.

“I’m being stupid.”

“Não. Pato, you are very rarely stupid! You are a inteligente bird.”

“You solved all those puzzles with us Donal’! You got into college. You are not stupid. Please tell us what’s going on. I’m getting scared.”

José can see that Panchito is indeed looking scared, as the rooster had never been one to hide his feeling away. The parrot decides to push a little. 

“Can you tell us what led to this? Please?”

José watches the duck suck in a shaking breath, noting absentmindedly that the bird’s clothes are absolutely drenched and Tempest is gently bumping against his cheek.

“We were on another adventure. Well, coming back from one. Unca Scrooge didn’t believe me when I said it was going to storm. Della thought I was being ridiculous. But then it hit us, and the waves were huge. I knew I’d be fine, with all the time at sea, fighting both the elements and enemies at the same time. But they wouldn’t listen to me. They hear me but they never listen. Was I being ridiculous when I forced them below deck?”

Panchito is shaking his head.

“No. That’s a pretty valid concern if the storm was that bad.”

“Did you get them home safe?”

José asks and Donald silently nods while wiping his face. The parrot continues.

“Then you did what was right in the face of the conditions you were forced to deal with.”

“But I locked them below deck…”

The parrot shakes his head.

“From what I have heard about your sister and uncle, they would have probably come back out and endangered themselves more. You needed to focus on driving the boat safely.”

\----------------------

Panchito nods along to José’s words, in-complete agreement of his assessment of the personalities of the two other ducks. The parrot then pipes up again.

“But that’s not why your crying, is it?”

Panchito is glad that his friend is able to so effectively root out the core issue. If he had been alone to comfort Donald, the rooster is sure that he would never have figured out what had set his friend off. Panchito kicks at the ground while they wait for Donald to work through another thick gush of tears. The rooster fills his stomach twist at the sight. He had never seen Donald so low. He wants to reach through the bowl and let him know everything will be alright. Donald hiccups, rubbing his eyes.

“She said that they don’t need me. And they don’t normally. But it hurts to hear it out loud, you know.”

Panchito lets out a soft growl. 

“Oh Donal’...”

The parrot whispers as the duck holds onto himself tightly. 

“They don’t get to talk to you like that. Los dos son demonios! Donal’, you and your opinions are valuable. They don’t get to talk down to you!”

Panchito’s hands curl into fists and feels a strong desire to beat up the duck’s family. He gets a self-deprecating laugh in return.

“I dunno guys. I’m always in the way.”

“Not to us, Donal’.”

José reassures. Panchito huffs.

“Donal’. Come to Mexico. I would be happy to have you and mi Mamá wants to meet you. You are wanted.”

“I…”

Donald mumbles looking away.

“You do not have to stay around people who drag you down. And perhaps some distance will help them understand their mistake. Go to Panchito’s. Let them know you’re going somewhere safe and let them know why. You can give them the location, but they don’t have a right to know if you don’t want to say.”

“But, I promised that Della would never spend another Christmas alone. I always managed to get home while in the navy…”

Panchito can see that the duck is on the cusp of agreeing.

“Hermanito. You deserve a break. Away from crazy adventure and stress. You can head back right in time for Christmas. If it would make it easier I can chip in to pay for it.”

Donald is breathing steadily now, hand slowly petting Tempest. He looks far calmer than he had at the beginning of the call. 

“Okay. If you’re sure I won’t be a bother ‘Chito.”

Panchito puffs up.

“You are never a bother amigo! You are always welcome in Mexico!”

“And Brazil. We are always happy to see you maninho. No matter what happens, fair or stormy weather as the song says. ”

José croons. Donald then nods and agrees to come to Mexico for the time that remains between the next day till the day before Christmas, about a week’s worth of time. They stay on with each other, shifting to lighter topics. Donald eventually falls asleep on the line and the other two stay on, eventually falling asleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Donald. Luckily he has two brothers who would honestly probably throw hands with Scrooge and Della. And more than likely win. I really need to stop being mean to Donald myself! José and Panchito might come for me! Yikes!


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> abatido-dejected

Donald wakes up when he hears particularly loud crows through his puddle. He sees Panchito stirring and waves tiredly at the rooster. He gets a friendly good morning and then a goodbye. José is also there, half awake and waving. They all break off the connection and Donald then dispels Tempest. He sucks in a deep breath preparing to go home, grab some money and clothes and then hop on the first train to Mexico he can get a ticket for. Donald walks all the way back to the mansion and Duckworth greets him at the door.

“Master Donald! Ah, we were concerned about you.”

“Sorry Duckworth.”

“Would you like me to inform Master Scrooge and Mistress Della that you are home?”

“Er, sure. I’m grabbing some stuff from my room. Can you tell them that I’ll meet them in the living room in like ten minutes.”

This earns the duck a raised eyebrow but an agreement comes from the butler. Donald waddles to his room and packs a duffle. He had exchanged most of the gold from his school adventures for money. Some of it is in his private bank account. Some of it is in his room. He takes the money and then makes his way down to the living room. Della is already there, looking at him with relief.

“Donny! You’re okay! We were so worried!”

He gives her a small smile.

“Yeah. I’m alive. I am going to take your advice though and go run back to my rooster.”

“What are ye sayin’ laddie? You just got back.”

Scrooge walks in concern painted across his bill. Della has tears welling in her eyes as she forms fists with her wings.

“I’m tired Unca Scrooge. I just need a break and to get out of your way. You said you didn’t need me. So I’m going somewhere safe and where I’m needed.”

A frown decorates his uncle’s face. Donald sucks in a breath. 

“You promised to be there at Christmas! To never leave me alone. You know I didn’t mean it!”

Della yells, tears dripping on her face. 

“I’d move heaven and earth for you two. And I know you would probably do the same if pressed. I’ll be back in time for the holiday Dells. I love you guys, but I..”

Donald swallows down his words, not wanting to breathe life into them. He felt unloved. 

“Fine. Whatever! Its obvious you like your stupid friends more than you like family!”

Della screams. Donald feels his anger starting to boil.

“All I ever asked was to be listened to and wanted! Is that too much?”

“We listen, laddie…”

“No, you don’t Unca Scrooge. You hear me, but don’t listen. There is a difference. I can’t believe you guys. And Della, your jealous that I have close friends for the first time in my life. Can’t you just be happy for me?”

He ends his tirade with a begging tone, looking to his sister. Donald had envied her when they were young and she was able to easily garner friends. He had grown out of that phase, but it seems that she is still in it. A tear slides down his cheek as she stands silent. He grabs his bag and exits. 

“I’ll be back. I still love you guys. I’m just… tired…”

He leaves Panchito’s number with Duckworth, to only be used in an emergency and then heads out. 

\--------

José leans against his mother as she wipes down a counter. She lets out a noise of concern and turns to him, and begins to run her hands through his feathers, cleaning and comforting him. She uses her beak on the top of his head to better get at some of the feathers.

“What is wrong?”

“I’m just worried about a friend. He’s very far away, and I feel so useless not being able to help more.”

José glances down to his hands, sadness in the pit of his stomach. 

“You have talked to him?”

“Sim. I talked to him through the bowl. Mãe, he was so abatido.”

“Did you try to cheer him up?”

“Sim…:”

“Did it work?”

“A little…”

“Then you’ve done what you can, aside from checking back in with him to let him know that you are thinking of him.”

“I will do that tonight.”

“Good. Now be a dear and walk with Aline to her friend’s house. I don’t like her walking alone in that part of town.”

“Sim. Thanks, Mãe.”

He says with a smile and blows his mother a kiss from the kitchen doorway. 

“Shoo, shoo, you rascal.”

He laughs as she waves a rag at him in a half-hearted threatening gesture. The parrot moves to tap on the door that is to the collective room of all his sisters. 

“Aline! I’m escorting you to your friends.”

He walks with his sister, happily joking and talking with her. They pause for a while near a musician, dancing on the street and smiling. He drops her off, with her promising to keep safe and him promising to pick her up from the sleepover the next morning to walk her home. José takes a moment to look around and then decides to walk around the city. The parrot hopes this will help settle his nerves. Hopefully, Donald would be okay. José promises to himself that he will be sure to be more vocal about his appreciation of the duck in the future. No one should feel unneeded or unwanted. His hand tightens around the hook of his umbrella as he walks along. Pushing out a breath, José lets his anger slide away. There is nothing to be done for now. 

The bright green parrot finds himself on the beach, soaking in the sunlight. The large expanse of ground with no buildings reminds him of Panchito, while the crashing waves remind him of Donald. Perhaps they could go to the beach as a group sometime. He sighs as he stands there and searches his pockets for some gum. He pops in a stick and begins to blow bubbles as he pensively stares at the ocean. The waves crash around his ankles as his feet bury themselves in wet sand. The parrot loses his train of thought several times and eventually elects to travel back home and try to get the gritty sand out of his feathers. He straightens his shirt and pops his current bubble before turning smartly on his heel and walking back through the city. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A quick note about preening, close friends and family use hands to go through feathers. As an analogy, it’s a bit like hugging and rubbing that person’s back or scratching their head or back. Some cultures, in the duckverse, would have it be more or less except able. Using one’s beak is for very close family, parents and kids, or really close siblings. It’s a bit like brushing and messing with hair and kissing the other person’s forehead. Something like these examples, that in my culture at least, is more private and shows a level of deep deep love. Not necessarily romantic tho. Again some cultures are cooler with this, and faster for people to be brought into this second level, but is still a sign of a close bond everywhere around the world  
> TLDR : Using hands to preen is like, basic care and attention for good friends, and using beak is like, I would die for you and I love you like family, but not necessarily romantically.  
> Okay, with that world-building piece done, I’d like to say, thank you for reading! Special thank you if you pay attention to the author’s notes! I’ve enjoyed reading all the comments appreciate all of the kudos!


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pato-duck  
> primos, tíos, tías y - cousins uncles, aunts and   
> hijo-son

Panchito anxiously shifts from foot, hoping to release some stress. The train station is bathed in moonlight as he waits for his duck friend. Morales stands near him, holding onto the magic serape they had used to fly here and were going to use to return home, taking advantage of the night to hide them from observers. A train pulls in and a few people get off. Panchito scans the crowd and crows as he spots his friend. He tackles the duck, wrestling with him. Donald lets out an angry shout that dissolves into laughter as he realizes who he is fighting. The two play fight for a bit, rolling around the floor, laughing and cutting up. Suddenly, Donald folds in on himself and begins to cry. Panchito stands, scooping up his friend. 

“You’ve had a pretty rough day amigo. It’s okay to cry.”

Panchito rubs his friends back as the duck simply sobs into his shoulder. Morales picks up the duck’s bag and leaves the station. Panchito softly reassures his friend as the other clings to him. His older brother finds a spot safe enough and they get on the serape and begin flying home. Donald slowly calms down but keeps Panchito in a tight hold. The rooster hums and steadies his friend as the serape fluctuates. As they get closer, Panchito speaks up.

“We are almost there Pato.”

Donald takes a deep breath, wipes his eyes, and seems to have regained control over his emotions. Panchito feels the distinct desire to drop kick the ducks that created these tears.

“Thanks. I needed that. It is really nice to see you Panchito.”

“Do not worry, Pato. That’s what amigos are for. Come! My Mamá has been waiting to meet you all day.”

The serape has landed and Panchito pulls his friend towards the ranch house. Donald grabs his duffle and waddles beside him. Panchito throws his head back with a crow, which is returned tenfold from within the house. Several birds come out smiling and excited to greet the visitor. Panchito watches with a smile as his small friend is overwhelmed with handshakes, welcomes, and hugs. His entire family had turned out. He had not given details, just that his friend was having a really bad time and needed some cheer, and the Pistoles family sure delivered in attempting to make the duck feel welcome. Panchito absently notes the wagging tail feathers that were paired with a bashful excited smile on the duck. His Mamá pulls the duck into a tight hug. 

“It is good to meet the duck brave enough to stay my little Panchito’s amigo!”

“Mamá! Don’t embarrass me.”

Panchito whines, dragging his friend from the hug that was clocking in at around four minutes. She yells after them that dinner will be ready soon. Panchito pulls Donald to his room as the duck chuckle to himself.

“So, I hope you don’t mind sleeping on the floor. I got what I could, but the house kinda is full of primos, tíos, tías y siblings since Christmas is right around the corner. It was this or have baby primos in here, sharing mattresses.”

Panchito says with a laugh as he gestures to the blankets and pillows on the floor. His own mattress had been commandeered, but he honestly preferred this. Donald shoots him an apologetic look.

“Sorry for adding one more to the crowd…”

“No. Donal’ you have given me a perfect excuse to keep out everyone from my room.”

The rooster winks conspiratorially at his friend. Donald snorts and tucks his duffle into a corner.

“In that case, I’m happy to help. And the floors great. It’ll be like our sleepovers after our adventures! Just minus one…”

The two take a moment of silence for the missing Caballero.

“We’ll see him when winter break is over. Plus we can call him tonight and let him know you got here safe.”

Panchito says with a smile and gets a grin in return. 

\---------------------------------------

Donald enjoys doing chores at the ranch, as it reminds him of summers spent at his grandmother’s farm. He wakes up each morning early with Panchito, eating a lovely breakfast with a huge, friendly family, and then goes out to do work. His bad luck often ends up leaving him with dirt and muck covering him and an occasional broken item, but the family is super nice about it. Panchito laughs with him as he gets dirtied himself. They run around the ranch, in between the work that needed to be done, wrestling and horsing around. Tempest is more often than not loosely looped about his kneck. He had formed the dragon as soon as he had found out that the family knew about and accepted Sierra. The lion in question is often right at Panchito’s heels, small most of the time, but occasionally becoming big enough to ride. Every night they call up José to stay connected. Donald consciously chooses not to call Della, hurt still bubbling up at the thought of her. But this rarely happens as the chaos of the ranch pulls him. It is different from the chaos of adventures; simpler in a way. Little to threaten his life here. 

The duck is scrubbing a dish in the sink, singing absently to himself as he cleans each plate. Panchito’s mother walks in and he closes his bill, hoping to avoid annoying her with his scratchy voice. 

“Oh, hijo, please keep going. It is nice to have music while working, no?”

“Er… I don’t want to bother you with my voice, ma’am.”

“I told you to call me Mamá. and your voice is fine hijo! I can hear your alma when you sing.”

“Alma?”

The duck asks, having heard the word a few times from Panchito. The hen clucks as she sits down in a chair at the counter adjacent to the sink in which Donald is scrubbing dishes.

“Soul, or lifeblood is a better English translation to describe it. When you sing freely, your heart is on display. No one should be forced to silence their heart.” 

“Oh… I’ve never heard it described like that.”

“Si. Song is something that none should take from you. So hijo, sing me one of your American tunes.”

Donald sheepishly smiles and begins to sing the song that he had been singing to himself from the beginning.

“Life is a mystery, everyone must stand alone. I hear you call my name. And it feels like home.”

As if summoned by the song Panchito is there, holding his guitar and begins to strum. Donald blushes with embarrassment and loses himself in singing the song. 

“When you call my name it's like a little prayer. I'm down on my knees, I wanna take you there. In the midnight hour, I can feel your power. Just like a prayer, you know I'll take you there.”

His voice is joined by his friends. Other family members begin to gather in the kitchen. Those familiar with the song sing the lyrics while others clap. Donald ends up swinging around with one of Panchito’s young cousins. Dancing, stomping, clapping, and singing fills the kitchen. Donald feels warmth fill his gut at smile and wink that Panchito’s Mamá shoots him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little Madonna for the end of the chapter. Oof. So Donald gets a positive mom figure, which is nice! And Panchito does an absolutely lovely job of making sure his friend is going to be okay! On to the final chapter my friends!!


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Muito obrigado-many thanks  
> senhorita - miss  
> Tchau senhorita- goodbye miss

José slowly runs his fingers down the page of his notes, reviewing some theater terms in hopes of getting a little ahead for next semester. He hopes to participate in a play this time around, having taken the prerequisite class necessary to start getting roles. He looks up when his mother calls him from the living room he walks up to her.

“Sim?”

“You have a call. Some American girl?”

“I see. Muito obrigado.”

He takes the phone and leans against the wall.

“Olá? José speaking.”

“Where is Donald?!”

“A senhorita Della, so good to hear from you. I don’t remember giving you my number?”

He keeps his voice calm, almost teasing, while her’s is filled with anger. 

“I found it inside his desk when I was trying to find out how to call him. Now, where is he!?”

“I do believe it’s rather rude to rifle through other’s things, or is that different in America? I am not always good at knowing the cultural differences.”

“You stupid parrot! I’m worried, okay? I haven’t heard from him in several days, and its all my fault, and I’m scared he’s not going to come back!”

José can hear her desperation. He feels only slightly bad. He still is not over the sight of his brother breaking down, alone, in a cave.

“Senhorita Della. He is with Panchito. Quite safe. If it helps, he already has the train ticket to return to you. He bought a round trip.”

“Oh… Thank you.”

“Sim. Senhorita Della. You need to be more careful with Donal’. Green is a good color for me but not for you.”

“I guess I have been a bit jealous… Donald said something about that before he left.”

“Donal’ loves you. He speaks highly of you. He worries about you, but it just shows he cares.”

He hears the female duck sigh sadly to herself. 

“I suggest you fix this when he comes home. Senhorita, very few are lucky enough to be related to someone so brave. Don’t lose him because of your own short-sightedness.”

“I… Okay. Sorry for calling you stupid. You don’t deserve that.”

“You are forgiven for that. A word to the wise senhorita, I’d watch yourself. Donal’ may forgive you, but I will not forget.”

“Are you threatening me for Donal’?”

She sounds baffled.

“Sim. He might hold you dear and refuse to fight you but Panchito and I hold no such qualms. So, please. For your own sake. Do not hurt our brother again. Tchau senhorita.”

He shifts his voice to come across with more of a threat and hangs up. If necessary, he would act on it. He had made a promise to himself to bandage and fix any wound given to either of his brothers. That included emotional injuries. His mother raises an eyebrow at him.

“She is Donal’s sister and she hurt him.”

That seems to be enough explanation for her as the older bird nods and moves back into her own room. Then Aline calls for José to help her with her back head feathers. He goes happily, quickly settling back into his family and letting the angry and strong emotions brought on by the call fade away. 

\-----------------------------------------------

Panchito balances Donald on his shoulders as he bolts across the yard. His second oldest brother and a couple of his cousins are chasing after the two of them. Donald twists tossing back another water balloon. From what the rooster can hear it hits its target. 

“Left!”

Panchito quickly shifts directing, only a little water splashing onto his talons. He keeps running as fast as he can. He, several of his family members, and Donald had decided to compete in an all-out water balloon fight. The only rule is to stay in the front yard so that clean up is easier. Panchito and Donald had succeeded early on in hitting everyone else and soaking them. This had changed the game from a free for all to a focus on the duo.

“We’re out Panchito!”

The rooster lets out a squawk as he is squarely hit in the back. He falls down to the ground, limbs violently sprawling out in all directions. Donald tumbles from his perch, rolling through the dirt. Panchito attempts to rise to go help the duck who is flailing, but then he is hit in the face by water. He lets out a startled burst of laughter and finds himself soon yanked onto his second oldest brother’s shoulder. He struggles as he hangs upside down, giggles still erupting from his body. One of his cousin’s proceeds to dump a bucket of water over his head. He can hear them doing something similar to Donald. The rooster sputters until the water suddenly stops flowing over him. He is dropped but never hits the ground. Donald had caught him and stumbles beneath his weight. The rooster coughs, spitting out some of the water that had squeezed down the wrong pipe. 

“You okay Panchito?”

Donald asks with some worry, and it’s clear that the duck had forced ever one to stop. The rooster coughs a little more and then nods.

“Si.”

“Even if you are okay, we should probably stop. Things are getting a little too rough for my liking.”

Panchito concedes to the duck’s statement, communicating to the rest of the group, and most of the others seem to take it pretty well, beginning to run around the yard to pick up the pieces of broken ballon. 

“Its a bit uncomfortable to be this soaked.”

Panchito complains as he and Donald help the others out. Then the rooster comes up with an idea.

“Do you think you can use your power to dry us off?

Donald shrugs and then holds out his hand as it glows. Panchito takes it and the water from the feathers of the two collects in Donald’s other hand. They become dry and Panchito thanks the duck who smiles and shifts the water to a bucket to be used for something else. Other family members wander over to ask for the same to be done for them. Donald happily obliges and the group is completely dry in a couple of minutes. They finish in the yard and Panchito and Donald head back inside. 

\-------------------------------------------

Donald gets one last tight hug from Panchito before getting on the train to head back home. He collects his thoughts as best he can during the journey and really hopes that things go well upon his return. When he finally is in front of the door of the mansion he takes a second to breathe. Then he knocks. Duckworth opens the door.

“Ah. Master Donald.”

“Hey, Duckworth.”

Donald awkwardly kicks at the ground as the Butler holds the door open.

“Donny? Donny!”

His sister shoves her way through the doorway. She hugs him tightly.

“Hey Dells. I told you I d be back.”

“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have said any of those things! I was jealous. You were right.”

“I forgive you. You know I still love you, right? Just because I have more people in my life doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for you.”

Donald pats his sister as she holds him close and nods. Uncle Scrooge stands in the hall just beyond the door. Donald looks to him over the head of his sister. The older duck looks relieved and apologetic. The second is an unusual look for his Uncle. 

“It’s good tae see ye laddie.”

Donald nods and lets himself be pulled in by Della who seems to be trying to make up for the lost time. They spend most of the day hanging out together, doing family Christmas activities like making cookies and decorating the tree. Donald finds out that his twin had refused to do these activities without him there. It was nice to know that his absence had meant something to her. It let him know that he was actually wanted and a little needed in the house. Christmas morning comes with its usual early morning excitement and exchanging of gifts. 

As the rest of the break continues, Donald finds himself enjoying the fewer number of adventures that they are going on. Uncle Scrooge claims that he had chosen to do this to help with stress and to get some work done at the bin. Donald knows that his uncle had actually done this to make him feel less worried and he is thankful. He and Della mess around the mansion and it almost feels like when they were kids again. He brings in some of the casual wrestling from his time with Panchito to fool around with Della. Donald also plays music on the stereo more often, dragging Della to dance with him like José was prone to do. She enjoys the new activities if the laughter and smiles are anything to go by. He wants her to know, not just through his words, but through his actions that she is still important to him. Donald makes time each night, when he is in his room with the door locked, to call up his friends and give them updates and reassurances. All in all, it is one of the best winter breaks that he has ever experienced. He feels the love of his family and reciprocates it wholeheartedly. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, a little regret on Della’s side and some repairing of the sibling relationship. My boi José be speaking straight facts to her though. And Panchito continues to be a lovely dear and makes Donald happy for a while! A little set up for next semester if you look closely! PS I’m planning on publishing the first chapter or so of that story when this chapter goes up.  
> I am so so so happy with the warm reception this story has received. You guys are amazing!!!!! I had a ton of fun writing this out and am very happy that the story will be continuing onwards. This story has been a fun way to translate some of my strange dreams about college into a plot. I’ve said this before, but I’ll say it again, I have really enjoyed reading all of your comments! Thank you so much for sticking with this story! I’ll see you in the sequel!!  
> Ps If you see something in this story and want to run with it yourself, like drawing, podcast, or writing your own story, this is me giving blanket permission. Id love to be told about it because I’m always on the hunt for more three Caballeros content! Cheers!!


End file.
